Development and application of a self-transcendence enhancement program for the well-being of elderly women living alone in Korea

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study was to develop a self-transcendence enhancement program and examine its effect on self-transcendence, spiritual well-being, and psychological well-being in elderly women who live alone. Methods A self-transcendence enhancement program was developed through theory, literature review, and in-depth interviews. The theoretical framework came from the Psychoeducational Approach to Transcendence and Health intervention model based on Reed’s middle-range theory of self-transcendence. The program consisted of multiple modalities in a structured, theory-based program lasting for eight weekly sessions. Using a single-group pretest-posttest design, the program was tested on a group of 40 elderly women aged 75 to 84 years living alone in Daejeon, South Korea. Participants completed self-reported study questionnaires before and after the program at the elderly welfare center. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 24.0, with significance level set at .05. Paired t-test was used to compare mean differences before and after the program. Results The mean age of the study participants was 79.1 years. After completing the program, the participants showed higher levels of self-transcendence (t=8.78, p<.001), overall spiritual well-being (t=8.30, p=.002), religious spiritual well-being (t=1.79, p=.040), existential spiritual well-being (t=6.75, p=.002), and positive affect (t=3.77, p=.001) than they did before the program. They also reported lower levels of depression (t=–7.59, p<.001) and negative affect (t=–6.15, p<.001). Conclusion The self-transcendence enhancement program developed in this study may be effective for improving the level of self-transcendence in elderly women living alone and helping them to attain spiritual and psychological well-being.

Keywords

• aged
• depression
• female
• personal satisfaction
• psychological adaptation