Identifying Factors related to self-perception of aging in Spanish older adults

PRIETO FLORES, M.E.; FERNANDEZ-MAYORALAS, G.; ROJO-PEREZ, F.; RODRIGUEZ-RODRIGUEZ, V.; FORJAZ, M.J.; RODRIGUEZ-BLAZQUEZ, C.

Congreso; Gerontological Society of Americas 68th Annual Scientific Meeting. Aging as a lifelong process; 2015

The aim of this study is to identify factors related to the way older adults feel about their own aging process. Multivariate regression linear models were applied to a representative sample of community-dwelling population aged 50 years old or more, from the Ageing in Spain Longitudinal Study, Pilot Survey (ELES-PS), conducted to 1,747 individuals. Age was positively related to a higher satisfaction with one?s own process of aging (regression coefficient: 0.15, p < 0.01), whereas comparing with women, men were less likely to feel satisfied (-0.24, p < 0.05). Health status perception (0.36, p < 0.001) and functional capacity (0.14, p < 0.05) were positively associated with self-perception of aging. In contrast, the experience of loneliness showed a negative association with satisfaction (-0.39, p < 0.001). Similarly, obstacles to travel in public transport seem to negatively affect the satisfaction with aging process (-0.59, p < 0.01). This study provides new information about the multidimensional experience of aging, which has potential implications related to the important role that demographic characteristics, health, loneliness and barriers in the outdoor environment have in older adults perception of their own process of aging. This study based on the ELES-PS would benefit from longitudinal data, allowing the evaluation of causal associations of the analyzed factors.