TY - JOUR
T1 - Social support factors and health among a senior center population in southern Ontario, Canada
AU - Fitzpatrick, Tanya R.
AU - Gitelson, Richard J.
AU - Andereck, Kathleen
AU - Mesbur, Ellen Sue
N1 - Funding Information:
gion of southern Ontario, there are several different types of senior centers which are similar to the centers in Phoenix and the U.S. which serve fairly independent and functional individuals. All are funded by the provincial government under the Canadian Ministry of Health.
PY - 2004
Y1 - 2004
N2 - Past research on senior centers has mainly focused on utilization, frequency, duration of attendance, participation or various activities and services. This study strives to go beyond previous research by examining social support factors and their relationship to mental and physical health across a senior center population in southern Ontario, Canada. Data were collected at two large senior centers in the Kitchener, Waterloo area. We used a self-administered survey among a sample of older participants (n = 186). One-way ANOVA with post-hoc Duncan's multiple range tests, t-tests, and linear regression analyses were used to examine the influence of social support (friendship, caregiving and advice) on mental and physical health. The results indicated that caregiving is significantly related to physical health, how respondents feel in general, and happiness with personal life. Advice from others is significantly related to perceptions of having a life full of interesting things. Additionally, respondents who are volunteers perceive better health and social support than non-volunteers, those who eat at the center perceive better health and caregiving support, and those that started a new activity perceived better health and social support from friendships. Implications for social work practice, policy and future research are discussed.
AB - Past research on senior centers has mainly focused on utilization, frequency, duration of attendance, participation or various activities and services. This study strives to go beyond previous research by examining social support factors and their relationship to mental and physical health across a senior center population in southern Ontario, Canada. Data were collected at two large senior centers in the Kitchener, Waterloo area. We used a self-administered survey among a sample of older participants (n = 186). One-way ANOVA with post-hoc Duncan's multiple range tests, t-tests, and linear regression analyses were used to examine the influence of social support (friendship, caregiving and advice) on mental and physical health. The results indicated that caregiving is significantly related to physical health, how respondents feel in general, and happiness with personal life. Advice from others is significantly related to perceptions of having a life full of interesting things. Additionally, respondents who are volunteers perceive better health and social support than non-volunteers, those who eat at the center perceive better health and caregiving support, and those that started a new activity perceived better health and social support from friendships. Implications for social work practice, policy and future research are discussed.
KW - Canadian senior centers
KW - Mental and physical health
KW - Social support
KW - Social work interventions
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U2 - 10.1300/J010v40n03_02
DO - 10.1300/J010v40n03_02
M3 - Review article
C2 - 15837666
AN - SCOPUS:19444365057
SN - 0098-1389
VL - 40
SP - 15
EP - 37
JO - Social Work in Health Care
JF - Social Work in Health Care
IS - 3
ER -