Krause Neal
Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA.
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2006 May;61(3):S140-6. doi: 10.1093/geronb/61.3.s140.
The purpose of this study was to see if support provided and received from fellow church members reduced the deleterious effects of financial strain on mortality in late life.
Interviews were conducted with a nationwide sample of 1,500 older adults in 2001 and 2004. Participants were asked in 2001 about financial strain, church-based social support, and a range of private and public religious practices. Mortality status was determined at the follow-up interview in 2004.
The findings indicated that providing social support to fellow church members reduced the effects of support providers' own financial problems on mortality. In contrast, the data suggested that receiving support from people at church did not have the same stress-buffering effect.
Finding ways to help older adults become more involved in providing support to others at church may form the basis for developing interventions aimed at improving their quality of life.
本研究旨在探讨从教会成员那里获得的支持以及给予教会成员的支持是否能减轻经济压力对老年人死亡率的有害影响。
2001年和2004年对全国范围内1500名老年人进行了访谈。2001年询问了参与者的经济压力、基于教会的社会支持以及一系列私人和公共宗教活动。在2004年的随访访谈中确定了死亡状况。
研究结果表明，向教会成员提供社会支持可减轻支持提供者自身经济问题对死亡率的影响。相比之下，数据表明从教会其他人那里获得支持并没有同样的压力缓冲作用。
找到方法帮助老年人更多地参与到在教会中为他人提供支持，可能为制定旨在改善他们生活质量的干预措施奠定基础。
