| Referenceshhh Sample of Scientific Writing |
 Expertise, Efficiency & Confidentiality |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Survey
of Quality of Life
of Elderly People with
Focus on the Role of
Religious Belief |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Introduction |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| One of the biggest social challenges in the
next decades will be to cope with the growing global population and
with its growing part of elderly people. Statistical projections reveal
that the absolute growth and the growth of the elderly in North America
will be remarkable: AThe middle-series projection for 2050 indicates
that there will be 79 million people ages 65 and over, representing 20%
of the population. The population ages 85 and above is growing
especially fast. It is projected.. in.. 2050.. to 18 million (4.6%)@
(Bureau of the Census, 1997). One of the reasons why people in
the US live longer nowadays is that they live healthier lives. The
health care system is better and available for a larger number of
patients. People are more educated to follow healthier lifestyles which
include regular exercise and a more balanced, low-fat diet. They live
in cleaner cities with less environmental pollution, and normally have
balanced life-styles with alternating periods of work and leisure. As the number of elderly people will increase in our society in the next years, it is important to know more about their subjective and objective needs to politically and socially plan for the future that will enable the individuals to lead a life of good quality even in old age. Therefore, different quality of life (QOL) surveys of elderly people all over the world have been conducted to define and investigate the parameters which contribute to a Agood@ or Abad@ QOL in older years and to show how these parameters interact. In these surveys, however, the definition of AQOL@ is not standardized, but the authors have used their own definitions. Suh and Kim (1995) investigated Alife satisfaction@ factors among elderly people in Korea in 1994. A Alife-satisfaction@ index was correlated with the following variables: economic status, health status, marital status, and cohabitation with their children. The main result showed that the satisfaction level was highest under the following conditions: a) spouse alive, b) healthy economic status, c) no problems in carrying out daily activities. Therefore, the author concluded that future activities should be focused on increasing employment opportunities and establishing more local regular health care services to enhance the QOL of elderly people. In another study (Solomou et al., 1998), it was the goal to find out how the Awell-being@, dependent on the factors Ahousing@, Asocial integration@, Ahealth@, Alife satisfaction@, and Aperceived social support@, relate to a previous divorce and the actual marital status. Data from 2,041 British elderly people of 65 years of age or above were collected. The subjects were relatively healthy and not or only slightly physically or mentally handicapped. The results demonstrated that both previous marital status and current marital status were associated with five of the investigated determinants. a) Housing: Elderly men and women who had not been remarried after a divorce were less likely to be home-owners. Thus, the likelihood of becoming a home-owner increases when remarrying after a divorce. b) Social integration: Elderly men and women who had not been remarried after a divorce were less likely to be socially engaged. However, there was a difference between men and women. Men always or just recently living alone had lower scores on the social integration scale than women living alone. Therefore, divorce had a stronger negative impact on the social integration of men than of women. c) Health: ‘Health’ is defined by the following parameters: number of physical illness symptoms, global self-related health, symptoms of anxiety, and depression. Divorce did not seem to have long-term effects on the health in this relatively healthy group of elderly men and women investigated in this study. d) Life satisfaction: Elderly men and women who had not been remarried after a divorce had lower scores on the life satisfaction scale than individuals that actually remarried. The highest levels of life satisfaction were seen in elderly men and women currently living with a partner. However, there were demonstrated differences between men and women. While women had lower life satisfaction scores in their second marriages, life satisfaction scores of men remained equal in their first and second marriages. e) Perceived social support: It was shown that men who had never been married were in the group of those with the lowest degree of perceived social assistance. Charles (1999) investigated the influence of voluntary and permanent retirement on the well-being which is defined by measures of Adepression@ and Aloneliness@ in later life of elderly people in the US. He found that it is crucial for his analysis to adjust certain exogenous factors (i.e., retirement rules, social security system) that may influence the decision of a person to retire or to remain retired (i.e., variation of retirement status) and therefore affect people´s well-being. Only when excluding those exogenous variations it is possible to study the steady-state effects of retirement on the well-being. It was demonstrated that the direct effect of retirement on well-being is such that Aretirement appears to actually improve well-being once the endogeneity of retirement is accounted for@ (p. 24). Warshofsky (1999) cited in his review the results of two investigators, Mroczek and Kolarz from a survey of 2,727 men and women between the age 25-74 in Poland. They discovered that positive emotions as joy, life satisfaction, and overall happiness increased with age of the person. AAnd surprisingly, the younger participants reported more negative emotions, like feeling sad, nervous, hopeless, or worthless. We found that age still had an affect even when the other factors (gender, marital status, education, stress, health, or personality) were taken into account as possible influences@ (p.3). Coenders et al. (2002) conducted a QOL- Study in Girona, Spain, among elderly people of 65 years of age or above from a relatively high socio-economic level. The elderly people were interviewed with standardized questionnaires which included a set of defined objective and subjective parameters and sub-parameters that would contribute to the elderly people´s well-being. Objective QOL parameters included: objective health, autonomy, activity, social support, income level, cultural resources, and objective housing quality. Subjective QOL parameters included: Subjective health, satisfaction with activities, social satisfaction, general satisfaction with life, satisfaction with social services, and housing quality evaluation. The main results after using a multiple correspondence analysis and after correcting for the interviewer effects were: 1. The subjective QOL of elderly people appeared to be positively influenced by the following main objective factors: income, activities developed, and educational level. 2. The subjective QOL of elderly people appeared to be negatively influenced mainly by the following objective parameters: lack of autonomy, low income, poor material conditions of living, few daily activities, low educational level, and life in a non-cohesive community. 3. Another, quite surprising outcome came up that seemed to be unique in this survey and appears to contradict the above-mentioned findings of Salomou et al. The personal well-being of the elderly men and women appeared not to be very much affected by the person whom he or she lived with or by the fact whether he or she had or had not other relatives. The author explained this outcome by an increased Aadaptibility of human beings to disadvantaged conditions of living@ (p. 144). These studies demonstrate how various subjective and objective determinants affect the Quality of Life of elderly people in particular survey designs and areas of investigation. However, none of the above-mentioned studies have investigated another important determinant on the QOL of elderly people: the particular religious belief and the participation in church activities. Therefore, the purpose of this survey is: 1. to investigate the QOL of elderly people over 60 years of age in Columbia, Missouri, a small University town in rural Midwest of America, by selected parameters, and compare the results with some of the main findings of the surveys discussed above, 2. to find out if and how QOL is affected by the factors Areligious belief@ and church related activities in a non-representative number of elderly people in a town where the church plays a major role in the daily life of its population rumored to be Adeeply-religious@. The data should give a deeper insight into the general QOL of elderly people in a small town in America´s Midwest, and they should indicate whether and how the QOL is influenced by the religious belief and church related activities. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Method |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Participants The participants of this survey were five elderly, active people (four women, one man) between the ages of 76-90 living in Columbia, Missouri. The basic characteristics of the five participants in this survey are summarized in Table 1. As can be seen, the majority of the four women and one man are living in a partnership and the rest, who live alone, stay in close contact with family members elsewhere. Table 1: Basic characteristics of the participants (n=5)
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Materials |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The survey was based on questionnaires
consisting of four pages containing eighteen questions about “Quality
of life”. The first section included multiple-choice questions about
basic characteristics of the participants: age, gender, marital status,
and people they live with. The second section consisted of questions
about their objective and subjective health, performed activities,
satisfaction with leisure time, satisfaction with relationship of
friends and families, and worries about the future. The third section
dealt with questions about religious beliefs, life after death, and
church activities. In the last question the participants were asked to
rate their overall life-satisfaction. The questions in the second and
third sections were designed as multiple-choice questions with
additional space for open-ended comments. A sample of the complete
questionnaire is attached in the Appendix. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Procedures |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The elderly women and man were chosen
according to their availability and personally addressed outside of
their homes. One questionnaire was given to a women who was about to
leave a gym for people with arthritis, two questionnaires were given to
a couple visiting the public library in Columbia, and two
questionnaires were given to two women attending a quilting class. The
five distributed questionnaires were completed at home by the
participants, and all five questionnaires were returned in a
pre-stamped envelope. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Data Analysis |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The totals were calculated for all checked
variables. In addition, all open-ended questions with their completely
cited different comments were put in an extra table as a summary. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The results of the questionnaire are
summarized here according to the quality of life (QOL) parameters
identified in the introduction. These parameters include activities,
objective health, and personal satisfaction. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Activities |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Table 1 illustrates the activities performed
by the elderly participants. As shown here, all of the participants are
still very active in daily life. They drive cars, walk, practice some
hobbies, visit friends or help others, go to cultural events,
participate in associations, or even perform additional activities,
such as swimming or volunteering. The one man that answered none of
these questions was visiting the library when he was addressed to fill
out the questionnaire, and he is at least active in volunteering at
church and singing in a choir (Table 5, Appendix, question 8).
The data suggest that all of the participants experience some kind of
social integration due to their activities outside of their
homes. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Table 1: Activities of the participants (n=5)
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Objective Health |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Table 2 indicates that none of the
participants who answered the question currently have major health
problems. One woman is using a walking stick. One woman, who had
undergone an eye surgery the previous year, has fully and smoothly
recovered from the operation, and another woman only suffers from minor
aches (Table 5, Appendix, question 2). One woman that did not answer
the question is among the active participants who checked “yes” for all
the activities listed in Table 1, and she is also active in church
activities (bible study, recreational activities). As a result, it can
be assumed, at least, that she does not have any health problems that
are serious enough to prevent her from being active. The other person
that did not answer the question was the one man. As he is active as
well, it can be assumed, at least, that he does not have any health
problems that are serious enough to prevent him from being active. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Table 2: Health problems of participants (n=5)
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal Satisfaction |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| All participants that answered the question
about satisfaction of their health are very much or fairly satisfied
with it (Table 3). The reasons for being only “fairly satisfied”
included suffering from arthritis and stroke (Table 5, Appendix,
question 3). All participants are satisfied with the use of their leisure time. The stated reasons included having the opportunity and freedom of pursuing hobbies, traveling, and being together with the family. The one woman that did not answer the question about “use of leisure time” is at least very active and volunteering at church in her free time (Table 5, Appendix, question 1&8). All of the participants are “very” or “fairly” satisfied with the relationships of friends and family. The reasons for that included the supportiveness of friends and existing emotional bonds with the families (Table 5, Appendix, question 5, 6). All of the women and man were very much satisfied with the church activities due to long -term bonds with the same church or due to the diversity of activities offered by the church to people of different ages. These satisfaction parameters seem to be strongly related to the objective parameters “health,” “activities,” and “relationships to spouse or other close family members.” This means that there might be a relationship among the high emotional satisfaction of the participants and their relatively good health, their ability to pursue different activities, and their close family bonds. These associations between objective and subjective parameters will be further evaluated in the “discussion” section. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Table 3: Satisfaction of participants (n=5)
with different QOL parameters
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Table 4 shows that all participants have a
strong religious belief. They believe in “life” after death, attend
church services regularly, and participate in other church activities,
for instance volunteering. They are all very satisfied with those
activities (Table 3). |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Table 4: Religious issues of participants (n=5)
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| “Life as a whole” was rated “very happy” by
all women and man (Table 3). The two explicitly stated reasons for
feeling “very happy” with life included close and happy relationships
to the families (spouse, children), financial security, and freedom and
mobility to travel (Table 5, Appendix, question 10). This happiness
with life does not seem to be negatively influenced by future worries
experienced by four of the five participants. Most of these worries
consisted of fears of losing mobility and physical independence. One
woman was worried about the financial situation of a sick, adult
child (Table 5, Appendix, question 7) but is able to overcome her
worries by her strong religious belief. The parameters investigated in this survey (such as availability of close family members; activities; health; satisfaction with activities, health, personal relationships; religious issues) seem to be strongly associated with the satisfaction of “life as a whole”. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discussion |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This survey has investigated objective and
subjective Quality of Life (QOL) parameters of elderly people 65 years
of age or older in Columbia, Missouri, using a questionnaire. In
contrast to other published surveys, this survey includes the
parameters ” religious belief” and “ church activities” to assess how
these factors contribute to the QOL parameters including satisfaction
with life as a whole of elderly people in a small town in the Middle
West of the
USA. The results showed that all elderly people questioned in this survey experience a high objective and subjective QOL. They are all in good or relatively good health, are active in different leisure activities, have tight emotional bonds with their families (spouse and/or children) and close friends, have strong religious beliefs, and are all engaged in different church activities. Their satisfaction with the single parameters, e.g., satisfaction with family bonds, and with life as a whole is very high or fairly high in all of the elderly man and women. These results seem to be consistent with previous research. Recall that life satisfaction was highest in the elderly people when the spouse was alive (Suh and Kim, 1994; Salomon et al., 1998) and the elderly people had no problems carrying out daily activities (Suh and Kim, 1994; Coenders et al., 2002). These findings seem to be reflected in this study, too. It appears that there exists a relationship among good health, involvement in different daily and church activities, tight family bonds, and strong religious belief on one side and a high life satisfaction on the other side. In one case, for instance, the participant has explicitly expressed overcoming her worries by her strong religious belief. Other participants have explicitly stated that their reasons for being very satisfied with single QOL parameters in this study (i.e., leisure time, relationship to family, friends, and church) and life as a whole include the support of their partners, close relationships to their children, friends and church, and physical independence, granted by good health. However, there are other findings in the introduction that attribute positive emotions of the elderly exclusively to higher age (Warshofsky, 1999). Other findings show that a high life-satisfaction is not attributed to the partner living with or to the existence of other relatives (Coenders et al., 2002). This survey has several shortcomings, which makes it difficult to verify the relationship among the different QOL parameters. The first limitation is the lack of a control group of younger people included in this survey. This makes it impossible to verify whether the high life-satisfaction of the elderly people is somehow attributed to higher age (Warshofsky, 1999). Another shortcoming of this study is the small sample size. Therefore, the selected participants are non-representative for the whole population of elderly people in Columbia and it is impossible to perform any correlation tests among the single QOL parameters. In addition, the findings in this study are not representative for the whole group of elderly people in Columbia. There are no results available about life-satisfaction of elderly people who suffer from bad health, live in nursing homes, do not have any close family bonds or do not belong to any church. Therefore, it cannot be statistically proved how the different QOL parameters interact, e.g., how the religious belief or family bonds contribute to the life satisfaction of the elderly in this survey group. In spite of these limitations the study has provided some insights into the quality of life of some elderly people in Columbia. Even though the findings may not be generalized, it can be assumed that a healthy, active life with close bonds with family and friends contribute to a high satisfaction of life as a whole. It can also be assumed that the religious belief and church activities play a major role in the lives of elderly people in Columbia that might help to settle bonds of relationships and to overcome some worries and anxieties. Therefore, church organizations should think about expanding their availability of activities for the elderly people in Columbia to improve their quality of life. To get a better idea of what kind of specific church activities the elderly are interested in and which other needs of the elderly men and women should be addressed by the churches, it might be beneficial to conduct another survey on elderly people that includes these aspects. It would also be beneficial to replicate this survey on a larger population of elderly people in Columbia. This future research should also include a larger variety among these individuals, including people living in nursing homes, suffering from impaired health, and those living less active, socially integrated lives. This might provide us with further insights into how the different QOL parameters interact and contribute to satisfaction of life as a whole. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| APPENDIX |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I. References |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bureau of the Census (March 1997). How We`re
Changing. Demographic State of the Nation: 1997. U.S. Department of Commerce. Economics and Statistics Administration. Current Population Reports. Special Studies, Series P23-193 Charles, K.K. (1999). Is Retirement Depressing?: Labor Force Inactivity and Psychological Well-Being in Later Life. Dept. of Economics and School of Public Policy, University of Michigan, (unpublished) Coenders, G., Casas, F., Batista-Foguet, J.M., Gonzalez, M. (2002). Living Conditions, Interviewer Effects and Perceived Well-Being of the Elderly. A Multiple Correspondence Analysis Approach. In Anuska Ferligoj, Andrej Mrvar (Ed.), Developments in Social Science Methodology, Metodoloski zveski, 18, Ljubljana: FDV, (pp.126-146). Solomou, W., Richards, M., Huppert, F.A., Brayne, C., Morgan, K. (1998). Divorce, current martital status and well-being in an elderly population. International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family, 12, 323-344. Suh, M-K., Kim, C-S. (1995). An analysis of life satisfaction determinants among elderly persons in Korea. Journal of Population, Health and Social Welfare, 15; 2. Warshofsky, F. (1999). Aging in the New Millennium. What is ahead for us? Stealing Time, The New Science of Aging, TV Books. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| II. Sample of questionnaire |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Thank your very much for taking part in this
research survey about “Quality of life” of people 65 years of age or
over. The results may give a better idea about the needs and problems
of elderly men and women in
Columbia. Please fill it out as best as you can, and send it back in the pre-stamped envelope afterwards. The data will be kept confidential. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| QUESTIONNAIRE ABOUT “QUALITY OF LIFE”
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Who do you live with? Alone: ¨ But have family members somewhere else I am in contact with: ¨ And have no family members, or I am not in contact with them at all: ¨ With Spouse: ¨ Other: (please describe): _____________________________ Are you satisfied with your general health? Very satisfied ¨ Fairly satisfied ¨ Not very satisfied ¨ Not at all satisfied ¨ Please briefly explain reason: ___________________________________ Which, if any, health problems apply to you? I was admitted to Hospital during the last year ¨ I am using a walking stick or crutches ¨ I am suffering from a chronic disease ¨ I need hearing aids ¨ Other health problem:_________________________________________ Which of the following activities do you participate in? I drive a car yes ¨ no, never ¨ I walk yes ¨ no, never or very rarely ¨ I practise some hobbies yes ¨ no ¨ I visit friends or help others yes ¨ no ¨ Other activities:_________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ Do you go to cultural and recreational events? Yes ¨ no ¨ Do you participate in some associations? Yes ¨ no ¨ Are you satisfied with the use of your leisure time? Yes, very much ¨ Yes, fairly ¨ No, not very much ¨ No, not at all ¨ Please briefly explain reason: ___________________________________ Are you generally satisfied with the relationship of close friends? Yes, very much ¨ Yes, fairly ¨ No, not very much ¨ No, not at all ¨ Please briefly explain reason: ___________________________________ Are you generally satisfied with the relationship of your family (couple, children, grandchildren): Yes, very much ¨ Yes, fairly ¨ No, not very much ¨ No, not at all ¨ Please briefly explain reason: ___________________________________ What future situation is most worrying for you? ___________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ Do you have a strong religious belief? Yes ¨ no ¨ Do you believe in “life” after death? Yes ¨ no ¨ Do you go to church services on a regular basis? Yes ¨ no ¨ Are you involved in any other church activities? Yes ¨ Please list:___________________________________ Are you satisfied with the activities that your church offers? Yes, very much ¨ Yes, fairly ¨ No, not very much ¨ No, not at all ¨ Please briefly explain reason: _____________________________ No ¨ How would you rate your happiness or satisfaction with your life as a whole? Very happy ¨ Fairly happy ¨ Not very happy ¨ Not happy at all ¨ Please briefly explain reason: ___________________________________ |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| III. Table 5: |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| III. Table 5: Comments on “open-end”
sub-questions to the following questions: 1. Which of the following activities do you participate in? “Other”: “I enjoy swimming and volunteer jobs” “I attend church, volunteer in the community, keep up with family and friends here-and by e-mail, letters and phone calls to those living elsewhere. I read newspapers and books (non-fiction). I keep up with politics” 2. Which, if any, health problems apply to you? “Other”: “I am fine, walk slower than years ago, have a few aches+problems-handwriting is not good!” “I had cataract surgery on both eyes last year (6 weeks apart). The operation was smooth, successful and recuperation quick” 3. Are you satisfied with your general health? Reasons for being “fairly satisfied”: “Have arthritis and had a stroke” “Arthritis is my one problem” 4. Are you satisfied with the use of your leisure time? Reasons for being “very much” satisfied : “Do what I like” “I travel whenever I want, go to concerts, bank trips, visit relatives out of state” “Have many interesting things to do and we have daughter and family nearby” 5. Are you generally satisfied with the relationship of close friends? Reason for being “very much” satisfied: “I enjoy our neighbor, friends, church activities and volunteer co-worker” “Very supportive 6. Are you generally satisfied with the relationship of your family (couple, children, grandchildren): Reasons for being “very much” satisfied: “We love one another” “The family is great!” 7. What future situation is most worrying for you? “I would hate to become ill and dependent on children. Life is good, easy now and have no special worries” “Not being able to care for myself” “What will become of an adult child who has Crohn`s Disease and is self-employed, on seasonal basis. He has savings but one needs regular source of income in old age. With prayer and faith in God, God will provide!” “None” “Losing mobility as I age” 8. Are you involved in any other church activities? Please list: “Play organ at two churches” “Volunteer at church and office once a week and do assorted activities also” “Perform administrative services, sing in choir” “Bible study, recreational activities” “Bible studies and Seniors` Group. I used to serve as church librarian” 9. Are you satisfied with the activities that your church offers? Reasons for being “very much” satisfied: “It tries to serve all ages even though resources are limited” “I have been a member of the same church for 50 years. It´s a comfortable area frame” 10. How would you rate your happiness or satisfaction with your life as a whole? Reasons for being “very happy”: “I am able to do my best. My wife is always a pillar and support” “The four children are educated, have interesting jobs and are settled in their own home-2 in Missouri and 2 in Oregon-We keep in close contact-all are confident adults- I am very proud and pleased with them. My husband and I are secure financially, can travel and enjoy life.” |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home |
Services |
Order & Quotes | Résumé |
References |
Links |
Contact |
German |