Effects of Arts Engagement on Physical Performance, Cognition, Social Isolation, and Self-Perception in Older Adults

Effects of Arts Engagement Programs on Physical Performance, Cognition, Social Isolation, and Self Perception in Older Adults

The purpose of this community-engaged project is to examine how taking part in different arts (dance & music), compared to control (no arts) affects older adults' Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL using the Short Form-20(SF) form), physical performance (Short Physical Performance Battery-SPPB), cognition (using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment-MoCA), social engagement (National Social Life, Health, & Aging Project-NSHAP survey), and perceptions of self (focus interviews).

In this Randomized-Controlled-Trial, 60 adults (20/condition) will take part in 20, 45-minute sessions (ballroom dance, ukulele/guitar playing, or control- i.e. social conversation), 2 times/week for 10 weeks.

While the investigators know that arts participation improves function in older adults, exact effects of different arts programs on health outcomes remains unclear.

The investigators plan to fill this gap by studying how different arts participation affect health outcomes.

The overall aim is to study how arts engagement helps older adults remain active and influences physical, psychological, and emotional functioning.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Be healthy,
• > 65 years of age and able to take part in learning music, or ballroom dance.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Presence of a co-morbid mental health diagnosis or other physical or behavioral challenges that the study staff assess as rendering the participant unable or unsafe to participate in the study.