Social support and anxiety in the elderly of Hamedan, Iran

Today، due to the high growth rate of aging، protecting and improving the health and quality of life of elderly as a vulnerable group of the population is taken into consideration. This study was performed to determine the relationship between social support and anxiety in the elderly. In this descriptive-analytic study، 380 older adults of Hamedan city were selected through random sampling. To gather the data، Social Support Appraisals Scale and Geriatric Anxiety Scale were used as well as Demographic Variables Questionnaire. Data were analyzed by Correlation Coefficient and Independent T-test. The sample consisted of 68. 9% male and 90% who were married. The mean age of the elders was 68. 06 ± 6. 72 years. Results showed that social support has significant relationships with anxiety and its subscales، of which cognitive subscale had the highest correlation (P-value < 0. 001، r = - 0. 494). Because of the increasing rate of aging، the importance of the social determinants of health such as social support is important in reducing anxiety in elderly.