Revista de conductas, terapia y rehabilitación adictivas

Relationship between depression, death anxiety and quality of life among elderly

Deepa M Rasquinha

India has nearly 104 million elderly. Elderly in India is a person who is of age 60 years or above. Aging is an important stage in human life wherein there are physical, psychological, cognitive, social and emotional changes. Depression among the elderly is a more common problem then people might think. However, it must be emphasized that depression is not a part of normal aging. Death is very near in old age, hence a logical belief is that death anxiety is more among the aged in comparison to the youngsters. Death anxiety is defined as the thoughts, fears, and emotions about that final event of living that one experiences under more normal conditions of life. An elderly person's quality of life is defined, first and foremost, by the respect they have for themselves, something over which they have power, and secondly, by the respect, the outside world shows them. A cross-sectional study was conducted in the elderly with age ranging from 60 to 75 years. Using convenience sampling 240 elderly were selected. Geriatric Depression scale, Templer’s Death anxiety scale and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire-Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) were administered to the sample. Data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation. Results revealed as death anxiety increases depression also increases. A significant negative correlation was found between depression and quality of life indicating that as depression increased quality of life decreased. Improving quality of life in the elderly by using various strategies also helps the elderly keep away from depression.