J Korean Acad Nurs.  2009 Oct;39(5):622-631. 10.4040/jkan.2009.39.5.622.

A Comparison of the Factors Influencing the Life Satisfaction of the Elderly According to their Cognitive Impairment Level

• Hwang RI
• Lim JY
• Lee YW

• KMID: 820239
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2009.39.5.622

Abstract

PURPOSE
This study was conducted to analyze the factors that influence the life satisfaction of the elderly according to their cognitive impairment level.
METHODS
This study was conducted by dividing 3,012 elderly residents of a regional community into three groups based on the scores of the Korean version of the Mini-Mental State Examination: a normal group without any cognitive impairment, a suspicious group with a mild level of cognitive impairment, and a high risk group with a high level of cognitive impairment. Researchers made phone calls, house calls, and personal visits to health centers and shelters for the elderly to gather the information required for this study.
RESULTS
The results of this study revealed that social relationships, depression, and activities of daily living had a significant impact on life satisfaction for the normal group, while social relationships and depression had a high impact on life satisfaction for the suspicious group, and social relationships had high impact on the life satisfaction of the high risk group.
CONCLUSION
Based on the results of this study, we suggest that programs that promote development of the social relationship networks of the elderly should be established to promote their life satisfaction.

Keyword

Aged; Cognitive disorders; Satisfaction

MeSH Terms

Activities of Daily Living
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Cognition Disorders/*psychology
Demography
Depression
Female
Humans
Interviews as Topic
Male
*Personal Satisfaction
*Quality of Life
Risk Factors
Social Support

Reference

1. An J, An K, O'Connor L, Wexler S. Life satisfaction, self-esteem, and perceived health status among elder Korean women: Focus on living arrangements. Journal of Transcultural Nursing. 2008. 19:151–160.

2. Aquino JA, Russell W, Cutrona CE, Altmaier EM. Employment status, social support, and life satisfaction among the elderly. Journal of Counseling Psychology. 1996. 43:480–489.

3. Bowling A, Farquhar M, Grundy E, Formby J. Changes in life satisfaction over a two and a half year period among very elderly people living in London. Social Science and Medicine. 1993. 36:641–655.

4. Byeon YC. A study on development of dementia management mapping. 1997. Unpublished manuscript, Korean Institute for Health and Social Affairs.

5. Byrne-Davis LM, Bennett PD, Wilcock GK. How are quality of life ratings made? Toward a model of quality of life in people with dementia. Quality of Life Research. 2006. 15:855–865.

6. Chou KL, Chi I. Determinants of life satisfaction in Hong Kong Chinese elderly: A longitudinal study. Aging and Mental Health. 1999. 3:328–335.

7. Chou KL, Chi I. Successful aging among the young-old, old-old, and oldest-old Chinese. International Journal of Aging and Human Development. 2002. 54:1–14.

8. Everard K. The relationship between reasons for activity and older adult well being. Journal of Applied Gerontology. 1999. 18:325–340.

9. Forsell Y, Jorm AF, Winblad B. Association of age, sex, cognitive dysfunction, and disability with major depressive symptoms in an elderly sample. The American Journal of Psychiatry. 1994. 151:1600–1604.

10. Hong SH. A comparative study of social support network among the elderly groups with and without dementia or depression. Journal of Korea Gerontological Society. 1999. 19:113–128.

11. Katz S, Akpom CA. 12 index of ADL. Medical Care. 1976. 14:116–118.

12. Kim GB. Prospect and situation of elderly dementia. The Korean Nurse. 1998. 37:16–24.

13. Kim J, Jeong I, Kim Y, Hwang S, Choi B. Screening for high risk population of dementia and development of the preventive program using web. Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing. 2003. 33:236–245.

14. Kim J, Shin I, Kim S, Yang S, Jeong S, Park K, et al. Correlates of activities of daily living in demented and non-demented elderly. Journal of the Korean Neurological Association. 2005. 23:199–205.

15. Kim SH, Chi SA. An analysis of the relationship between the social support and the health state of the old. Chung-Ang Journal of Medicine. 1985. 10:123–142.

16. Kwon JD, Cho JJ. A study of factors influencing the life satisfaction of the aged. Journal of the Korea Gerontological Society. 2000. 20(3):61–76.

17. Kwon YC, Park J. Korean version of mini-mental state examination (MMSE-K) part I: Development of the test for the elderly. Journal of the Korean Neuropsychiatric Association. 1989. 28:125–135.

18. Lawton MP, Brody EM. Assessment of older people: Self-maintaining and instrumental activities of daily living. Gerontologist. 1969. 9:179–186.

19. Lee BJ. Study on the improvement of elderly women's quality of life related to their daily activity level. 2001. Seoul: Kyunghee University;Unpublished masters thesis.

20. Lee HJ. The relationship among depression, self-esteem and life satisfaction of elderly institution residents. 2005. Seoul: Ehwa Women University;Unpublished master's thesis.

21. Lee HS, Kim JH, Go HJ, Ku HM, Kwon EJ, Shin JY, et al. The standardization of the geriatric quality of life scale-dementia (GQOL-D). Journal of the Korean Geriatrics Society. 2004. 8:151–164.

22. Lee KJ, Lee SY. A study on the factors influencing depression among elderly people with and without dementia. The Korean Journal of Fundamentals of Nursing. 2004. 11:166–176.

23. Li Y, Meyer JS, Thornby J. Depressive symptoms among cognitively normal versus cognitively impaired elderly subjects. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. 2001. 16:455–461.

24. Newsom J, Schultz R. Social support as a mediator in the relation between functional status and quality of life in older adults. Psychology and Aging. 1996. 11:34–44.

25. Oh MA, Shin YO, Lee TY, Kim JS. A study on the cognitive function by MMSE in the urban elderly. Chungnam Medical Journal. 2003. 30:101–113.

26. Park J, Kwon YC. Standardization of Korean version of the mini-mental state examination (MMSE-K) for use in the eldery part II: Diagnostic validity. Journal of the Korean Neuropsychiatric Association. 1989. 28:508–513.

27. Ryu HS. A study on ADL and dementia of aged person with medicaid in Korea. Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing. 2001. 31:139–149.

28. Sato S, Demura S, Kobayashi H, Nagasawa Y. The relationship and its change with aging between ADL and daily life satisfaction characteristics in independent Japanese elderly living at home. Journal of Physiological Anthropology and Applied Human Science. 2002. 21:195–204.

29. Sheikh JI, Yesavage JA. A knowledge assessment test for geriatric psychiatry. Hospital and Community Psychiatry. 1985. 36:1160–1166.

30. Shin K, Byeon YS, Kang Y, Oak J. A study on physical symptom, activity of daily living, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in the community-dwelling older adults. Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing. 2008. 38:437–444.

31. Sparks M, Zehr D, Painter B. Predictors of life satisfaction: Perceptions of older community-dwelling adults. Journal of Gerontological Nursing. 2004. 30(8):47–53.