Identifying connections between subjective health and Quality of Life: a qualitative research on aging people

PRIETO FLORES, M.E.; FERNANDEZ-MAYORALAS, G.; ROSENBERG, M.W.; ROJO-PEREZ, F.

Congreso; The 2007 ISQOLS Conference (From Quality of Life Concepts to Quality of Life Performance Measures); 2007

Introduction and Aims: The importance of qualitative methods on Quality of Life studies is increasingly recognized. While auention has been paid to the exploration of relevant domains,subjective wellbeing, paradox on Quality of Life, and representations of health in ageing, less consideration has received the identification of relationships among life domains and their influence on Global Quality of Life. This investigation aims to explore tbc connections between subjective health and other life domains in connection with life satisfaction in old age. This work belongs to a wider research program which in addition includes the analysis of objective conditions and the opinion of scrvices providers for seniors at the commuity level in the Madrid Region.Data sources: Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with a sample of 24 older adults with different levels of health status, living in different geographic areas of the Madrid Region.Methods: The paper is based on Grounded Theory method according to Strauss and Corbin position. Open, Axial and Selective coding process of the research will be described.Results: Different models representing the relationship between the subjective experience of health and Quality of Life among older adults are constructed. Adaptation strategies in ageing process are presented from a Quality of Life perspective.Discussion and Conclusions: Methodological questions and explanations for the results are discussed. It is expected that the findigngs of the study provide a deeper understanding about the complexity of health and Quality of Life as interconnected concepts, as well as on the diversity of experiences in ageing process. This work will contribute to methodological issues in Quality of Life from a qualitative approach.