Factors influencing mental health of the elderly living in Muang Nakhon Sawan Province

Abstract

This descriptive research aims to study factors influencing mental health of the elderly living in Muang Nakhon Sawan Province. The study was conducted on sampling group of 278 people. Tool was a Suanprung stress test 20, coping scale and Thai mental health indicators, which were proved reliability at 0.903, 0.845 and 0.909, respectively. The statistics used for analysis were percentage, average, standard deviation, Chi–square, Pearson’s product moment and multiple regression. After conducting research, result shows that mental health of the elderly is a general population of 38.1 %, factors of stress and coping styles were at a moderate level of 56.5 % and 69.1%, respectively. Coping styles of the elderly were Palliative coping and confrontative coping at moderate level of 79.1 % and 57.9 %, respectively, emotive coping at low level of 83.5 %. Personal factors such as gender, age, salary, marital status education and diseases have direct related with mental health of the elderly with statistical significance at the .01 level. Coping styles, confrontative coping and Palliative coping correlated with mental health of the sample statistically significant at the .01 level (r = .598, .479, .704 respectively). The factors that are crucial for predicting mental health are coping style, gender and marital status for 66.9 %. Therefore, coping styles in the elderly should be promoted in confrontative coping, palliative coping and emotive coping on individual differences for good mental health.