Resilience in Brazilian’s Older Persons with Visual Impairment: A Marginal Effects Approach

Abstract

<i>Background:</i> Resilience is essential for healthy ageing in a society where people live longer and face increased individual adversity risks. This study investigated the association between visual impairment and resilience in Brazilians aged 60 and older. We explore personal, sociodemographic, and economic factors that influence the impact of visual impairment on the psychological and social support aspects of resilience outcomes. Resilience was operationally defined at an individual level as an outcome through self-report measures, expressing the preservation of psychological dimensions such as motivation, emotional well-being, and social support in the presence of visual impairment. <i>Method:</i> Data from the Brazilian National Health Survey (2019), a population-based, cross-sectional study using a Partial Proportional Odds Model and a marginal effect at the means to make the results more interpretable. Participants included 21,699 older adults with an average age of 69.5 years; 55% were women; 35% exhibited partial or permanent visual impairment, and 53% were considered resilient. <i>Results:</i> As the severity of visual impairment increases, the likelihood of resilience in older adults decreases for both men and women. Resilience increases with age, regardless of the severity of the disorder. Older men were more resilient than women in all categories of visual impairment. Regardless of the severity of the disorder, unscholarly participants show greater resilience. Participants who rated better health status had better resilience levels. <i>Conclusions</i>: This study suggests that, beyond the positive association with some sociodemographic factors, resilience is strongly related to cultural factors and self-perceived health status among older Brazilians.