A Study of Impact of Social Activities and Religion/Spirituality on Depression and Life Satisfaction among the Korean Elderly

초록

This study assessed the manner in which social activities, religious experiences, and spiritual practices related to depression and life satisfaction among 217 Korean elderly individuals, aged 65 to 80. The Social Activities Scale and Brief Multidimensional Measure of Religiosity/Spirituality were employed to assess social activities and six domains of religiosity/spirituality: daily spiritual experiences, values, forgiveness, private religious practice, religious/spiritual coping, and religious support. In addition, depression was assessed with the Geriatric Depression Scale, and life satisfaction with the Satisfaction with Life Scale. After controlling for demographic variables, lower depression scores were predicted by higher levels of religious and spiritual coping, social activities, higher income, and lower daily spiritual experiences. In addition, identifying as female, advanced old age, and lower social activities predicted lower life satisfaction in this study. The implications of this study’s findings on social work practice are also discussed, along with some future research directions.

키워드