The Role of Perceived Burdensomeness, Thwarted Belongingness, and Giving Meaning to Life in Psychosocial Adjustment: The Mediating Role of Self-Care in the Elderly

In old age, people suffer from many mental and physical illnesses, which make it important for the elderly to pay attention to adapting to these diseases. So, the aim of this research was to study the role of perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, and giving meaning to life in psychosocial adjustment, as well as the mediating role of self-care in the elderly.

This research was descriptive and correlational, conducted through available sampling of 200 elderly people who lived in the city of Ardabil. After the necessary assessments in terms of mental disorders and inclusion criteria, they were chosen to conduct this investigation in 2020. The Meaning in Life Questionnaire, Psychosocial Adjustment Scale, Self-Care Questionnaire for the Elderly, and Interpersonal Needs scale were used to gather the data. The data were analyzed using SPSS25 and Amos24 software.

The findings showed that perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness have a negative and direct effect on elderly self-care [β = -0.25, P < 0.01] [β = -0.20, P < 0.05] and psychosocial adjustment [β = -0.0, P < 0.05] [β = -0.12, P < 0.05]. Also, giving meaning to life has a positive and direct effect on elderly self-care [β = 0.32, P = 0.01] and psychosocial adjustment [β = 0.033, P < 0.01]. The variable of self-care can play a mediating role in the relationship between thwarted belongingness [β = -0.174, P < 0.05], perceived burdensomeness [β = -0.140, P < 0.05], and giving meaning to life [β = 0.223, P < 0.05] with psychosocial adjustment. Moreover, among the exogenous variables, thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness by change in self-care have been able to reduce psychosocial adjustment. Giving meaning through self-care, however, has increased psychosocial adjustment.

The findings revealed that thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and giving meaning to life are important variables in health and adaptability of the elderly, which draws attention to family-centered interventions and individual therapies.