Assertiveness, Depression, and Social Support in Older Visually Impaired Adults

Abstract

This study examined the relationship of assertiveness, depression, and social support in a sample of 100 visually impaired older adults receiving services at a rehabilitation facility. Irrespective of sex or the type of impairment, age of onset of the impairment, duration of the impairment, there were significant correlations between social support and depression, assertiveness and depression, and social support and assertiveness.

Assessment of Psychological and Psycho-physiological Problems Among Visually Impaired Adolescents

“…However, most of the visually impaired students with respect to their gender identity had increased or decreased levels of anxiety, aggression and adjustment. In contrary to the above findings, there was no significant gender difference with respect to psychological problems among visually impaired subjects ( 26 ). It is evident that there is a strong relationship between the occurrence of psycho-physiological disorders and anxiety, frustration, aggression and adjustment among visually impaired students.…”

Relationships of Assertiveness, Depression, and Social Support Among Older Nursing Home Residents

“…Notably, the mean assertion and depression scores among nursing home residents are consistent with means on identical measures in community-dwelling older adults (assertion M = 19.1; depression M = 7.9; Kogan et al, 1995) and visually impaired older adults (assertion M = 18.3; depression M = 10.4; Hersen et al, 1995), suggesting that the higher functioning group of nursing home residents are no more depressed and no less assertive than other samples of older persons. Regarding social support, our nursing home sample appeared to show somewhat higher levels of overall support than community older adults in the normative sample (N = 5,279, M = 25.5) in the SSL12-I validation study (Kempen & van Eijk, 1995).…”

“…Among 69 community-dwelling older adults, Kogan, Van Hasselt, Hersen, and Kabacoff (1995) found that those who are less assertive and have less social support are at increased risk for depression. Among 100 visually impaired older adults, Hersen et al (1995) reported that higher levels of social support and assertiveness were associated with lower levels of depression. Assertiveness may rightly be an important skill among nursing home residents because workers at the institutional setting may not be as attuned to the emotional needs of a passive resident and the workers may respond poorly to the aggressive and actingout resident.…”

Positive and Negative Affect Change among People Living with HIV: a One-Year Prospective Study

“…The first hypothesis was not confirmed, as neither the baseline levels of PA and NA nor their changes were related to HIV infection duration. The abovementioned finding is somewhat contrary to other studies on the adaptation of affective well-being in case of stress induced by chronic illness [ 6 , 43 ]. More specifically, Schilling & Wahl [ 6 ] found in a group of patients suffering from macular degeneration that changes in PA were nonlinearly associated with the duration of this disease, but the NA level was stable, which is in line with classic theories on the dispositional nature of NA [ 44 ].…”