Examination of the association of age, disability, and mood among Jewish older adults in Israel

Aging Ment Health. 2002 Nov;6(4):397-401. doi: 10.1080/1360786021000007018.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between chronological age, disability and mental health in later life. Secondary analysis of data from a national probability sample of Jewish persons age 60 and over in Israel (n = 2,079) was employed. Mental health, measured on a 12-item mood scale, was successively regressed on age, sociodemographic characteristics, functional disability and physical health status, and on the interaction of age and disability. A significant negative association between age and mood emerged when confounding variables were not controlled (beta = -0.19). This association remained, to a lesser degree, after sociodemographic variables were entered (beta = -0.11). The addition of disability and health variables reversed the direction of the association (beta = 0.05). Finally, the entry of the interaction term (age x disability) bolstered the net association of age and mood (beta = 0.27). The analysis underscored the interaction of age and disability as a major threat to mental health in current aging cohorts.

MeSH terms

  • Age Factors
  • Aged
  • Disabled Persons / psychology*
  • Disabled Persons / statistics & numerical data*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Israel
  • Jews / psychology
  • Jews / statistics & numerical data
  • Male
  • Mood Disorders / psychology*
  • Regression Analysis