Predicting Depressive Symptoms of the Elderly According to Physical Activity Level and Demographic Characteristics: Examining the Role of Age and Gender

Abstract

Physical activity has physiological, psychological, and social positive effects. However, the relationship between physical activities and depression of the elderly in the country is unknown. This study was designed to examine the relationship between physical activity and depression. The statistical population consisted of the elderly of Arak city in 2013 and 263 subjects participate in the study. Data were collected with demographic characteristics questionnaire, Geriatric Depression Scale-short form, and Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity (RAPA) and analyzed with Pearson correlation coefficient, linear regression analysis, t test, ANCOVA test with SPSS-16 software. Findings indicated a significant relationship between depression and age, employment, fall history, economic status, physical activity, education, perceived health (P≤0.05). Variables of physical activity, fall history in the past year, economic status, and perceived health predicted depression (R2=0.358; P≤0.05). Mean score of physical activity in the male elderly was significantly higher than their female counterparts, and mean score of physical activity in 60-69-year-old group was significantly higher than their counterparts in 70-79 and ≤ 80-year-old groups (P≤0.05). There were no significant differences between age and gender and mean score of depression. These findings emphasize the importance of the effect of physical activity on depression in the elderly.

Keywords

• depression
• fall
• perceived health
• physical activity
• the elderly