Effects of a gerotranscendence educational program on gerotranscendence recognition, attitude towards aging and behavioral intention towards the elderly in long-term care facilities: A quasi-experimental study

Abstract

Background: Caregivers in long-term care (LTC) facilities have to uphold a positive attitude toward the elderly, so they will be more willing to provide the elderly with care of higher quality. Theory of Gerotranscendence is a theory which can assist the elderly in developing more mature and intellectual state of mind. It is hoped that the caregivers who receive gerotranscendence education may apply its concept to the care for the elderly.

Objectives: To evaluate the effects of the gerotranscendence educational program on caregivers' gerotranscendence recognition, attitude towards aging, and behavioral intention towards caring for the elderly.

Design: A quasi-experimental design with repeated measures was conducted.

Participants: A total of 41 caregivers in LTC facilities participated and completed the study.

Methods: Participants were invited to participate in a 2-day gerotranscendence educational program, and measurement took place at baseline, the end of the program (post-test) and three months after the program (follow-up test). The research tools included Gerotranscendence Recognition Scale-Chinese version, Aging Attitude scale, and Caregivers' Behavioral Intention Scale. This study used GLM repeated measures to perform analysis.

Results: There was a statistically significant difference in three repeated measures of participants' gerotranscendence recognition and behavior intention toward caring for the elderly (p=.002, .002, respectively) but not in the aging attitude score (p=.21). The post hoc comparison showed that the scores of these two outcomes in the post-test were significantly higher than those in the pre-test (p=.000; .024). However, the scores in the follow-up test were almost the same as those in the pre-test.

Conclusions: The gerotranscendence educational program had timely effects on caregivers' gerotranscendence recognition and behavioral intention towards aging, and so caregivers working in LTC facilities may require ongoing training in the gerotranscendence educational program to ensure that these positive effects remain strong.

Keywords: Attitude towards aging; Behavioral intention towards the elderly; Gerotranscendence educational program; Gerotranscendence recognition; long-term care.