Financial strain and loneliness among older adults: the moderating role of neighborhood cohesion.

OBJECTIVES: This study examines the association between financial strain and loneliness among adults aged 66 years and older. Guided by stress-buffering and gender socialization perspectives, it also assesses whether neighborhood cohesion moderates this association and whether this moderation varies by gender. METHODS: Using two waves of the United Kingdom Household Longitudinal Study that include measures of loneliness and neighborhood cohesion (n = 3,467 individuals; 6,934 person-wave observations), fixed-effects regression models examined whether within-individual changes in financial strain were associated with changes in loneliness over time. Interaction terms assessed moderation by neighborhood cohesion and whether this moderation varied by gender. RESULTS: Financial strain was associated with increased loneliness over time, whereas higher neighborhood cohesion was associated with lower loneliness. Neighborhood cohesion attenuated the adverse association between financial strain and loneliness. Gender-stratified analyses showed that this buffering effect was statistically significant among women but not among men; however, the three-way interaction among financial strain, neighborhood cohesion, and gender was not statistically significant. DISCUSSION: The findings highlight the need for community-based initiatives that foster neighborhood cohesion and for targeted financial support programs to reduce financial strain and its psychological consequences among older adults.