نشریه روانشناسی پیری
سال نهم شماره 4 (پیاپی 35، زمستان 1402)

Social factors and health-related behaviors, including physical activities and nutrition, play an important role in status of cognitive abilities in the elderly. Therefore, this study was conducted with the aim of investigating the role of social isolation, physical activity and nutritional habits in predicting age-related cognitive decline and executive function failure in the elderly. The research design was descriptive and correlational. The statistical population in this research included all elderly men and women in nursing homes in Tehran in 1401, from which 258 participants were selected based on Tabachnick and Fidell's formula by convenience sampling, and they were asked to the Folstein et al’s Mini Mental State Exam, Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning Scale, Lubben Social Network Scale, Washburn et al.'s Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly, and Guigoz et al.'s Mini Nutritional Assessment. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis with SPSS-26 software. The results showed that physical activity and nutritional habits have a negative and significant relationship with cognitive decline and executive function deficiency (p<0.001). Social isolation did not have a significant relationship with cognitive decline and failure of executive functions (p>0.05). In addition, the physical activity predicted the cognitive decline of the elderly by 20% and the nutritional habits by the amount of 14% predicted the failure of the executive functions of the elderly (p<0.001). It is concluded that proper physical activity and having a good nutrition pattern can be associated with the reduction of cognitive deficits in the elderly. This result contains implications in developing preventive and intervention programs to improve the cognitive ability of the elderly.

The increase in the elderly population in the country, along with various problems that threaten their physical and mental health, has led to inappropriate emotional reactions and stress-causing factors such as reducing resilience and intensifying stress in the elderly community. The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy on resilience and perceived stress in elderly residents in nursing homes. The present research method was a semi-experimental type with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The statistical population of the research included all the elderly living in Kermanshah nursing home in 1402, among which 30 people were randomly selected into two alternatives experimental and control groups with the available sampling method and according to the criteria for entering and exiting the study. Became the content of the therapy sessions was taken from the perspective of Segal et al. (2016). The research participants responded to the Connor and Davidson (2003) resilience questionnaire and the Cohen et al. (1983) perceived stress questionnaire. The data were analyzed using univariate analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) in SPSS-26 software. The results showed that the experimental group was significantly different from the control group in terms of both resilience and perceived stress variables. In other words, stress reduction treatment based on mindfulness improved resilience and reduced perceived stress in the elderly (P<0.05). According to the results of the present study, therapists can use mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy for health-related interventions, especially to improve resilience and reduce perceived stress.

One of the most important crises in the world seems to be suicide and its consequences. It seems that suicide, especially with increasing age, has an upward trend and has greatly increased in older population. Therefore, the present study was to investigate the relationship between social comparisons and suicidal thoughts with the mediating role of decision-making styles in older adults. This was a correlational study, of structural equation modeling (SEM) type. The statistical population included older adults over 65 years old living in Shiraz, Iran, among whom 265 were selected using convenience sampling method and according to the inclusion criteria. Participants filled out Beck scale for suicidal ideation (BSS), Scott and Bruce’s decision-making styles questionnaire, and Gibbons and Buunk’s social comparison questionnaire. The collected information was analyzed using SEM in SPSS-26 and Lisrel-8.8 software. The results of the present study indicate that the hypothesized model demonstrates a good fit. Furthermore, the findings suggest that social comparison is related to suicidal ideation through the mediating role of decision-making styles. Specifically, logical and intuitive decision-making styles were significantly and negatively associated with suicidal ideation, while the avoidant, dependent, and immediate decision-making styles were positively and significantly related to suicidal ideation. Based on the findings of this research, psychologists and experts are advised to address suicide ideation as a global and escalating issue by assisting individuals in shifting their focus towards the positive aspects of their lives and refraining from making superficial comparisons. Furthermore, reducing suicide ideation can be achieved by imparting decision-making skills to older adults.

The changes that occur in old age may lead to a significant decrease in physical ability and can make them feel empty and burdensome. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of logotherapy on the sense of energy and spiritual self-esteem among older people. In terms of purpose, this research was practical, and in terms of its nature, it was a quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest-follow-up design with a control group. The statistical population of the current research included all older people over 65 living in Qazvin, Iran in 2023, Among whom, a sample of 40 people was selected using convenience sampling method and according to inclusion and exclusion criteria and randomly assigned into two experimental and control groups (20 people in each group). The data collection tools included Atwater and Carmeli's Energy Feeling and Farhosh et al.’s Spiritual Self-Esteem questionnaires. Moreover, Frankel’s logotherapy protocol was utilized in the format of eight 90-minutes group sessions. The data were analyzed using univariate analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) in SPSS-27 software. The findings revealed that logotherapy significantly increased the sense of energy and spiritual self-esteem in older people. Based on the results of the current study, it can be concluded that strengthening spiritual empowerment via meaning therapy may enhance the sense of energy and spiritual self-esteem in older adults.

With an aging population, an increase in the provision of services to individuals experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is expected in care services for older adults. Therefore, this study was conducted with the aim of determining the effectiveness of compassion therapy on cognitive fusion and self-criticism in older adults with PTSD in Tabriz, Iran. The research method was quasi-experimental with a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The statistical population of the research included all older adults with PTSD living in Tabriz in 2022. The sample of the study included 30 older adults (65 to 75 years old) selected through convenience sampling method and according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the study, and were randomly assigned into experimental and control groups. The experimental group underwent Gilbert’s compassion therapy package in eight 90-minute weekly sessions. The questionnaires used in this research consisted of Thompson and Zuroff’s levels of self-criticism scale and Gillanders et al.’s cognitive fusion questionnaire. Data were analyzed using univariate analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) in SPSS-22 software. The results revealed that in the post-test stage, there is a significant difference between the control and experimental groups in terms of cognitive fusion and self-criticism (P<.001). Based on the findings of this study, compassion therapy results in the decrease of cognitive fusion and self-criticism in older adults and can represent new horizons in clinical interventions and can be used as an effective intervention method to improve the mental health and quality of life in older adults.

Old age seems to be one of the most crucial stages of human life during which individuals encounter a wide range of changes, particularly in the realm of physical and psychological health. Health anxiety, especially in older adults, can have undesirable effects, making it important to examine the factors influencing this variable. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between basic psychological needs (BPNs) and health-promoting behaviors (HPBs) with health anxiety in older adults, through the mediating role of resilience. This was a correlational study, of path analysis type. The statistical population of this research included all older women residing in Tabriz, Iran in the spring of 2023, among whom 220 individuals were selected as the sample using convenience sampling method. The measurement tools included the Connor and Davidson’s Resilience Scale, BPNs Questionnaire, HPBs Questionnaire, and Health Anxiety Questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient in SPSS-23 software and path analysis in LISREL 8.8 software. The results indicated that BPNs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) have a negative relationship with health anxiety in older women; HPBs (nutrition, physical activity, health responsibility, stress management, interpersonal relationships, and spiritual growth) have a negative relationship with health anxiety in older women. resilience had a negative relationship with health anxiety in older women. Moreover, BPNs were related to health anxiety in older women through resilience, as well as HPBs were related to health anxiety in older women through resilience. Therefore, it can be concluded that increasing resilience in older adults and fulfilling BPNs along with educating HPBs can prevent the increase of health anxiety.

Cognitive function and quality of life (QOL) are crucial indicators in health assessment, and their enhancement reflects the maintenance and improvement of both physical and mental health in older adults. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the prefrontal cortex on attention, working memory, decision-making, social cognition, and QOL in older adults. This quasi-experimental study employed a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The study population consisted of older adults aged over 60 residing in Tabriz, Iran in 2023, among whom, 40 individuals meeting the inclusion criteria were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group received 1mA tDCS over the prefrontal cortex for 20 sessions every other day, while the control group received no intervention during the same period. The Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) was utilized to assess cognitive function, and the Quality of Life Questionnaire-Short Form (QOL-SF 36) was administered to evaluate QOL at pretest and posttest phases. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was conducted using SPSS-24 software for statistical analysis. The results revealed a significant difference between the means of attention, working memory, decision-making, social cognition, and QOL in the experimental and control groups at the post-test phase (P<.05). Thus, electrical stimulation of the prefrontal cortex led to improvements in attention, working memory, decision-making, social cognition, and QOL, thereby enhancing cognitive performance and improving QOL in the experimental group compared to the control group. The findings suggest that tDCS over the prefrontal cortex enhances cognitive function in older adults, indicating its potential as an effective and beneficial method to improve cognitive performance and QOL in this population.