JOURNAL OF AGING PSYCHOLOGY
Year:2021 | Volume:7 | Issue:2|Papers Count:6

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a pandemic disease that has caused long-term social, economic and psychological effects. This disease is spreading rapidly all around the world and has led to a great deal of fear and anxiety among the people due to the unknown, complex and different behaviors of COVID-19. The elderly seems to be one of the special groups who experience this fear and anxiety largely, because they are highly vulnerable to COVID-19 and this disease appears to be more dangerous for them and leads them to experience various consequences. Hence, the present study aims to investigate the negative consequences of COVID-19 outbreak on the life of the elderly. This was a qualitative study of phenomenological type. The study sample consisted of 15 elderly people in Rafsanjan, Iran, selected by purposive sampling method and interviewed using an in-depth semi-structured. Data were analyzed using Colaizzi method. The results obtained from the analysis of the interviews indicated that the outbreak of COVID-19 has had negative consequences for the elderly, which can be categorized into six components. These components included psychological problems, feeling of fear caused by hearing/reading COVID-19-related news, the reduction or absence of referral to health centers, weakening of the economic status, complete cessation of sports activities and obsession in observance of health issues. Therefore, the prevention and management of such problems are of great importance. Moreover, special attention should be paid to the elderly in performing psychological and other interventions, and special plans are needed to reduce their problems.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has endangered people’, s health, especially that of the elderly, worldwide, and has caused many psychosocial damages. Therefore, the current study aims to investigate the psychological experiences of the elderly during the pandemic of COVID-19. This was a qualitative study of phenomenological type, in which the content analysis method was used. Fifteen elderly (60 years and older) experiencing quarantine conditions and physical distancing without COVID-19 infection were selected as the study sample using purposive sampling method. Sampling was continued until theoretical saturation was reached. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and Colaizzi analysis was used to analyze them. Extracted findings from the interviews were classified into 6 main themes (empty nest experience, hypersensitivity, psychological distress, personal problems, interpersonal problems and tension resulted from conditions) and 26 sub-themes. The results of this study indicated that the prevalence of COVID-19 has strongly affected all aspects of mental health in the elderly and that the serious effects of this pandemic have influenced the various aspects of their individual, interpersonal and social life. Therefore, it can be concluded that the elderly face many challenges during the outbreak of COVID-19 and need to receive appropriate psychological interventions.

Coronavirus symptoms have more severe physical and psychological clinical manifestations in the elderly. Accordingly, the elderly seem to be one of the main groups at risk for Coronavirus disease. The aim of this study was to predict Coronavirus anxiety based on coping styles with stress and meta-worry. The research design was correlational. The statistical population included all the elderly living in Ahvaz, among whom 300 were selected as the study sample using online convenience sampling method. The research instruments included Alizadeh et al. 's Corona Anxiety, Lazarus and Falkman's Coping Styles, and Wells's meta-worry Inventory. Used to analyze the data was a multiple regression method. The results indicated that problem-oriented coping style (r-= 0. 401) had a negative and significant relationship with corona anxiety in the elderly and emotion-centered coping style (r=0. 281) and meta-worry (r=0. 429) have a positive and significant relationship with corona anxiety (P<0. 01). Besides, the variables of problem-oriented coping style, emotion-centered coping style and meta-worry were able to predict 31. 5% of the changes in corona anxiety in the elderly, which the share of meta-worry was more than other variables (P<0. 01). Considering the capability of coping style and meta-worry in predicting Coronavirus anxiety in the elderly, training programs can be designed and represented through virtual workshops to increase problem-oriented coping style and to decrease emotion-centered coping style and meta-worry, in order to reduce Coronavirus anxiety.

Given the growing population of the elderly, it appears necessary to study the health-related factors of the elderly, which seem to be related to their quality of life (QOF). Recent researches have shown that spirituality, self-compassion, and sense of cohesion may improve health in this population. Therefore, this study aims to determine the model of QOF based on spirituality through mediating role of self-compassion and sense of cohesion in the elderly. The study population included all the elderly living in Zanjan, Iran, among which 370 were selected using convenience sampling method. The measures applied in the current study consisted of Parsian and Dunning’, s Spirituality, Raes et al. ’, s Self-compassion, Antonovsky’, s sense of coherence and The World Organization QOF Questionnaires. Path analysis was used to analyze the causal model. The results indicated the fit of the model with the data. The results also showed a direct and significant effect between spirituality (β, =0. 28, P<0. 05), self-compassion (β, =0. 23, P<0. 05) and sense of cohesion (β, =0. 40, P<0. 05) with the QOF. Moreover, the analysis of the role of multiple mediators using Preacher and Hayes’, s approach confirmed the mediating role of self-compassion and sense of cohesion in the relationship between spirituality and QOF. These results contribute to the theoretical knowledge regarding how spirituality affects QOF in the elderly. The findings illustrated that spirituality has the power to predict QOF among the elderly through self-compassion and sense of cohesion. All the three above-mentioned predictor variables are thought to be extensible and can be applied in the form of interventions using to improve QOF in the elderly.

Aging appears to be a global phenomenon that will be considered as one of the most important social and welfare challenges in developing countries in the near future, and it seems necessary to try to solve the problems of the elderly, namely their psychological problems. Therefore, the present study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment-based therapy (ACT) on the quality of life and death anxiety in the elderly living in Kermanshah, Iran. This was a quasi-experimental study with pretest-posttest and control group design. The statistical population included all the elderly living in Kermanshah in 2020. The sample size included 30 aged people (60 to 70 years old) selected by convenience sampling method and according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the study. The experimental group received ten 90-minute sessions of ACT, twice a week, and the control group assigned to a waiting list for the treatment. The measures used in this study included the WHO Quality of Life Questionnaire and Cult-Leicester’, s Death Anxiety Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) in SPSS-25. The results indicated that there is a significant difference between experimental and control groups in terms of both quality of life and death anxiety. In other words, ACT caused an improvement in quality of life and a reduction in death anxiety in the elderly (P<0. 05). Given the results of the present study, therapists and health-related practitioners can take advantages of ACT in conducting health-related interventions, particularly in order to improve the quality of life and to reduce the death anxiety in the elderly.

With age and the onset of the elderly, people are more prone to mental disorders including feeling of loneliness, anxiety, and depression, due to numerous losses such as loss of spouse, relatives, friends, occupation, social and economic status, beliefs, etc., as well as due to the reduction of physiological functions and mobility. Accordingly, this study aims to compare the effectiveness of metacognitive therapy and spiritual therapy on cognitive dissonance and feeling loneliness in the elderly living in nursing homes. This was a quasi-experimental study with pretest-posttest follow-up (PPF) and control group design. The statistical population consisted of all the elderly, aged from 60 to 75 years living in nursing homes of Tehran, Iran, among which Kahrizak nursing home was selected using convenience sampling method. In this way, 30 aged people (three groups of 10) with an average age of 60-75 years were selected using convenience sampling along with inclusion and exclusion criteria, and were randomly assigned into two experimental and one control groups. Participants were exposed to eight 90-minute sessions (2 sessions a week) of Wells’,metacognitive therapy and Boalhari’, s spirituality therapy. The follow-up step was conducted one month after the posttest step. Utilized to collect data were Harmon-Jones dissonance arousal reducing questioner and Dehshiri et al. ’, s loneliness questionnaires. Data were analyzed using univariate analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and Bonferroni post-hoc test in SPSS-22. The results demonstrated that both metacognitive therapy and spiritual therapy groups had a significant difference with control group in terms of the components of cognitive dissonance and feeling of loneliness in posttest and follow-up steps (P<0. 05). However, there was no significant difference between two groups of metacognitive therapy and spiritual therapy in terms of the components of cognitive dissonance and loneliness (P>0. 05). Given the findings of this study, metacognitive therapy and spiritual therapy can be effective in reducing cognitive dissonance and loneliness in the elderly.