Reducing Loneliness Among Older Adults Through Enhancing Positive Affect

The UCLA Loneliness Scale is a reliable self-assessment tool designed to evaluate feelings of loneliness. Possible scores range from 1 (never) to 4 (always).

The De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale is a validated, self-reported instrument assessing loneliness. Possible scores range from 1 (yes) to 3 (no).

Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) is a research method used to collect data in real-time and in the participants' natural environments. It measures momentary loneliness, momentary actual affect examined by the short version of the AVI scale, current and expected locations (e.g., nature, home, public places), as well as details about their current and expected social interactions, including the type (i.e., alone, with spouse, family members), features (e.g., supportiveness, closeness, pleasantness, meaningfulness), and number (i.e., 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or more than 5). Participants will also report on their current and expected activities, specifying the type (e.g., physical activity, working, cognitive activities) and characteristics (e.g., pleasantness, meaningfulness) of these activities.

The Psychological Well-being Scale is a validated, self-reported instrument assessing Psychological Well-being. Possible scores range from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree).

The Chinese version of the Perceived Stress Scale is a validated self-report tool used to measure Perceived Stress levels. Possible scores range from 0 (never) to 4 (very often).

PHQ-9 is a reliable self-report measure designed to evaluate Symptoms of depression. Possible scores range from 0 (not at all) to 3 (nearly everyday).

The Chinese version of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale is a validated, self-reported instrument assessing Symptoms of depression. Possible scores range from 0 (not feeling at all) to 3 (most of the time).

The Hong Kong version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-HK) is a validated tool administered by clinicians to evaluate cognitive functioning, especially in older adults. Possible scores range from 0 to 30, with higher scores indicating better cognitive performance.

The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support evaluates the social support derived from three key sources: family, friends, and significant others. Respondents rated each item on a 7-point Likert scale, where 1 represents "very strongly disagree" and 7 indicates "very strongly agree."

The Lubben Social Network Scale is a validated, self-reported instrument assessing the social networks of participants. This scale comprises six items, with three focused on family connections (family subscale) and three addressing friendships (friend subscale). The overall score ranges from 0 to 30, with each subscale spanning from 0 to 15.

The Affect Valuation Index (AVI) is a validated, self-reported instrument assessing affective experiences over the past week. It evaluates both the actual emotions experienced and the ideal emotions valued by the individual. Possible scores for each emotion reflect the frequency of experience, typically ranging from 1 (very slightly or not at all) to 5 (extremely or all the time).

The Social Network Characteristics Scale will assess the perceived supportiveness, closeness, pleasantness, and meaningfulness of participants' social partners over the past two weeks. Possible scores range from 1 (not at all) to 10 (extremely high). Additionally, participants will report the number of social partners they have engaged with during this same timeframe.

The MLQ is a reliable self-assessment tool that evaluates individuals' sense of meaning in life. This instrument comprises two subscales: Presence of Meaning and Search for Meaning, with each subscale containing five items. Each subscale has a minimum score of 5 and a maximum score of 35.

The GQ-6 is a validated self-report measure that evaluates inclination to recognize, appreciate, and respond to life events with gratitude. Possible scores range from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree).

The ERQ is a validated, self-reported instrument assessing emotional regulation strategies, specifically cognitive reappraisal (6 items) and expressive suppression (4 items). Possible scores range from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree).

The GSE is a validated instrument assessing participants' self-reported levels of self-efficacy. This validated instrument consists of 10 items designed to measure individuals' optimistic beliefs regarding their capacity to manage challenging situations. Participants will evaluate each statement using a 4-point Likert scale, where 1 indicates "not at all true" and 4 represents "exactly true."

The Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire is a validated measure assessing levels of mindfulness. Responses will be scored on a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 (never or very rarely true) to 5 (very often or always true).