Kim Wooksoo, Chen Ya-Ling
School of Social Work, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, 14260-1050, USA.
Int J Aging Hum Dev. 2011;73(4):283-98. doi: 10.2190/AG.73.4.a.
Depression in old age significantly decreases the quality of life and may lead to serious consequences, such as suicide. Existing literature indicates that elderly Korean immigrants may experience higher levels of depression than other racial ethnic group elders. The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate factors that influence depression among older Korean immigrants in Toronto. A total of 148 participants, ages 60 years or older (mean age = 74.01, SD = 8.24), completed face-to-face interviews in Korean language. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted by adding variables in three steps: (1) demographic variables; (2) acculturation variables (years of immigration and English proficiency); and (3) social determinants (social integration variables, physical health, and financial satisfaction). Results showed that acculturation factors were not associated with depression. Instead, social determinants variables, including lower physical health status and lower financial status, living alone, and lower level of social activity, predicted higher level of depressive symptoms, along with lower education. The final regression model explained about 37% of variance of depression in the sample. These results suggest that social determinants, not acculturation, are important factors explaining the levels of depression in Korean immigrant elders living in a metropolitan city in Canada. Implications for practice are discussed.
老年期抑郁症会显著降低生活质量，并可能导致严重后果，如自杀。现有文献表明，韩国老年移民可能比其他种族的老年群体经历更高程度的抑郁。这项探索性研究的目的是调查影响多伦多韩国老年移民抑郁的因素。共有148名年龄在60岁及以上（平均年龄 = 74.01，标准差 = 8.24）的参与者用韩语完成了面对面访谈。通过分三步添加变量进行分层回归分析：（1）人口统计学变量；（2）文化适应变量（移民年限和英语水平）；以及（3）社会决定因素（社会融入变量、身体健康和财务满意度）。结果表明，文化适应因素与抑郁无关。相反，社会决定因素变量，包括较低的身体健康状况和较低的财务状况、独居以及较低的社会活动水平，与较高水平的抑郁症状相关，同时教育程度较低也与之相关。最终回归模型解释了样本中约37%的抑郁方差。这些结果表明，在加拿大一个大都市生活的韩国移民老年人中，社会决定因素而非文化适应是解释抑郁水平的重要因素。文中还讨论了对实践的启示。
