Development of a framework to evaluate total health based on gerontology

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K18456
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Studies on the Super-Aging Society
• Research Institution: Osaka University
• Principal Investigator: Gondo Yasuyuki 大阪大学, 人間科学研究科, 教授 (40250196)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-06-29 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 健康 / 喪失と補償モデル

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study aimed to propose a new model of health that includes the very old, those aged 90 years and older. First, we used data from SONIC survey participants with the cutoff point for Rowe & Kahn's Successful Aging Model. Cut off points were better fitted to the healthy and unhealthy groups, when used 90 years old group data. There was a slight decline in subjective health and mental health between the healthy and unhealthy groups, but this results were negligible. In addition, the results showed development of gerotranscendence functioned as a psychological protective factor that compensated for the decline in various functions affecting mental health as the age increased. These results suggest the importance of psychological adjustment with respect to health in very old age.

Free Research Field

高齢者心理学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究では、90歳以上の超高齢者を含めたあらたな健康のモデルの提案を行った。SONIC調査参加の90歳前後の高齢者のデータからRowe＆Kahnのサクセスフルエイジングモデルを用い、基準値を設定した。その結果、90歳高齢者においても健康であると分類できた対象者は27%と少なかった。しかし、不健康であると分類された高齢者の主観的健康感や精神的健康は高かった。この結果は、超高齢社会において、心理的適応の良さを含めた健康の定義を確立することが重要であることを示唆していた。新たな健康の定義にへとつながる結果であった。