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खुला एक्सेस

अमूर्त

Psychosocial factors affecting healthy aging in Birjand South of Khorasan, Iran: A cross - sectional study

Marjan Farzad

Background: Nowadays, due to high rise in life expectancy, the elderly constitute a significant percentage of the world population. This will greatly increase the health issues of this stratum. The study determines psychosocial factors affecting the elderly health in Birjand, South of khorasan, Iran.

Methods: In this descriptive- analytical study, 544 subjects aged ≥60 years, were included. Convenience sampling used to select the participants. Dimensions of the elderly health were investigated with ʺHealthy Aging Indexʺ in the city of Birjand. Data analyzed by SPSS version 22 using Pearson correlation and independent t - test.

Results: Mean and standard deviation of the elderly health indices were 3.04 ± 0. 29. The highest score of subjects was in the acceptance of aging (3.45 ± 1.09) and the lowest score was in the social participation (2.84 ± 0.51). There was significant difference between mean of total health score, social relationships, and physical activity in terms of gender (P < 0.05). Most psychosocial factors affected healthy aging with self-efficacy (r = 0.69, p< 0.0001), social relationships (r = 0.68, p< 0.0001) and physical activity (r = 0.67, p< 0.0001), were highly correlated.

Conclusion: Enhancement of self-efficacy; social relationships and physical activity for healthy aging are important in the area. Barriers to the elders’ participation in physical activity and having social relationship, especially for old women, should be considered by authorities.