SOCIAL COGNITIVE FACTORS AFFECTING THE HEALTH OF ELDERS

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The proposed study, which addresses the research priority area of social psychology of aging (number 13), will be conducted by Dr. Jaclene A. Zauszniewski, an established investigator who is not currently funded for research in this area. The study will examine relationships among learned resourcefulness, health self-determinism, and help responses (self-help, informal help seeking, and formal help-seeking) and determine the effects of the three help responses on the physical and psychosocial health of chronically ill elders in assisted living facilities. Though research has found that elders who use both self- help and help-seeking strategies, reported better psychological well- being and physical functioning than elders who did not use self-help and help-seeking strategies or used only one of these strategies, the effects of social cognitive factors such as a repertoire of enabling skills (learned resourcefulness) and internal motivation for health (self-determinism) on the elder's use of self-help or help-seeking skills remain unknown. Learned resourcefulness and health self- determinism are expected to be significantly related to the elder's physical and psychosocial health through the choices they make to help themselves or seek help from formal or informal sources. If so, then health promotion programs for chronically ill elders that incorporate cognitive-behavioral interventions to enhance these factors will improve their self-management and thus their physical and psychosocial health. The study will test hypotheses based on the linkages proposed in Norman and Conner's five-stage social cognitive model for predicting health. Accordingly, the study will examine whether the physical and psychosocial health of chronically ill elders is related to demographics (race, gender), situational factors (chronic conditions, social networks learned resourcefulness, health self-determinism, and help responses when entered in successive steps that reflect the social cognitive model for predicting health. The hypotheses will be examined in a cross- sectional study of a stratified random sample of 120 residents of assisted living facilities with equal size subgroups defined by gender and race (African America, and Caucasian). Using a structured interview, measures of demographic and situational variables and established measures of learned resourcefulness, health-self-determinism, help responses, and health will be used. Multiple regression will be used for data analysis. This project will focus on the social cognitive factors that influence self-help and informal and formal help-seeking responses of elders with chronic conditions. As such, it will form the basis of a subsequent study to test the effectiveness of tailoring interventions that promote optimal physical and psychosocial health of chronically ill elders.