Daily Functioning, Health Status, and Happiness in Older Adults

In the choice between health and money, health comes first: an analysis of happiness among rural Chilean elderly

“…The results of this study show that Chilean rural seniors in general declare themselves to be less happy than seniors in studies in Alabama 9 and Hong Kong 2 . One relevant factor to explain this discrepancy is the lower standard of living in Chile compared to the elderly in the United States and Hong Kong as considered in the studies by Angner et al 9 and Nan et al 2 .…”

“…According to results from previous studies, we expected to confirm the relationship between older adults' happiness and health-related variables 3,9,10,13,14,15,20,34 . In addition, considering the relationship between social interaction and food 31 , and happiness and food 32,33 , this study intends to demonstrate that the level of satisfaction with food-related life and having company during meals are related to happiness.…”

“…Happiness can be beneficial in numerous ways; it has positive implications for society as well as individuals, suggesting that the promotion of happiness is a wise investment in social and public health 6 . The literature reports various studies that have used the Subjective Happiness Scale 7 to measure subjective happiness 2,8,9,10 . Some recent studies relate to older adults.…”

“…Some recent studies relate to older adults. For example, Angner et al 9 reported a mean happiness score of 5.67 (SD = 1.36) on a 7-point scale based on a sample of 383 older adults, patients in a primary care medical center in Alabama, United States. In a large and representative sample of the Hong Kong population, Nan et al 2 obtained a mean happiness score of 5.09 (SD = 1.18) on a 7-point scale for the 65+ age group.…”

“…For a sample size of 1,533 Chinese older adults, Chyi & Mao 11 found that, in contrast to living with a grandchild, living with one's child has a negative effect on happiness. With a sample size of 282 participants, of which the average age at the time of interview was 61 years (range: 49-99), Angner et al 9 concluded that health is one of the most influential predictors of happiness, and that the association between health and happiness depends greatly on the manner in which health status is measured, and that the degree to which disease disrupts daily functioning is inversely associated with happiness. Gray et al 3 examined the level of happiness of the Thai elderly population and its relationship to various external and internal factors.…”