Student Research Committee, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Department of Statistics and Epidemiology, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
BMC Geriatr. 2024 Jul 20;24(1):621. doi: 10.1186/s12877-024-05215-7.
The growing elderly population worldwide is accompanied by an increased disrupting daily activities and self-care. Neglecting the multifaceted needs of the elderly can lead to detrimental effects such as loneliness or social isolation, threatening healthy aging. Self-care is a key strategy to enhance daily functioning and mitigate feelings of loneliness among the elderly. This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the feelings of loneliness and its relationship with self-care and Activities of Daily Living (ADL) among the older adults of Tabriz city.
In this observational cross-sectional study, we engaged 315 older adults using a simple random sampling. Participants were selected randomly from Iran's Integrated Health System (IIHS) framework. Three questionnaires including de Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale, Persian version of self-care scale, and ADL-Katz were used for data collection. The Partial Least Squares and Spearman's correlation were used to investigate the relationships between demographic characteristics, loneliness, self-care, and ADL.
The sample comprised 315 respondents 51.1% were female, 49.5% had a middle school literacy and 86% were married. A significant negative relationship was observed between loneliness and self-care (P < 0.001 and r =-0.311). Demographic characteristics, including age and marital status, were found to negatively moderate the relationship between self-care (path coefficient - 0.07, P = 0.044) and positively moderate the relationship with loneliness (path coefficient 0.29, p < 0.001). ADL was positively associated with self-care (path coefficient 0.41, p = 0.046) and also a direct and significant relationship was observed between ADL and daily self-care (P < 0.001 and r = 0.335).
This study underscores the complex interplay between loneliness, self-care, and ADL. It highlights the need for interventions that address emotional health and daily living skills as part of comprehensive self-care strategies. Further research is needed to explore these relationships in more detail and to develop targeted interventions for different demographic groups.
全球老年人口的增长伴随着日常活动和自我护理能力的下降。忽视老年人多方面的需求会导致孤独或社会隔离等不良影响，威胁健康老龄化。自我护理是增强日常功能和减轻老年人孤独感的关键策略。本研究旨在调查大不里士市老年人的孤独感及其与自我护理和日常生活活动（ADL）的关系。
在这项观察性横断面研究中，我们使用简单随机抽样法招募了 315 名老年人。参与者是从伊朗综合卫生系统（IIHS）框架中随机选择的。使用德容·吉耶尔菲尔德孤独量表、自我护理量表的波斯语版本和 ADL-Katz 收集数据。使用偏最小二乘法和斯皮尔曼相关性分析来研究人口统计学特征、孤独感、自我护理和 ADL 之间的关系。
样本包括 315 名受访者，其中 51.1%为女性，49.5%具有中学文化程度，86%已婚。孤独感与自我护理呈显著负相关（P<0.001，r=-0.311）。人口统计学特征，包括年龄和婚姻状况，被发现对自我护理（路径系数-0.07，P=0.044）和孤独感（路径系数 0.29，p<0.001）之间的关系有负向调节作用。ADL 与自我护理呈正相关（路径系数 0.41，P=0.046），ADL 与日常自我护理之间也存在直接且显著的关系（P<0.001，r=0.335）。
本研究强调了孤独感、自我护理和 ADL 之间的复杂相互作用。它强调需要采取干预措施来解决情感健康和日常生活技能，作为综合自我护理策略的一部分。需要进一步研究以更详细地探讨这些关系，并为不同的人群制定有针对性的干预措施。
