The personal psychological peculiarities as a resource in the

complex human care for old people

Natalia Alexandrova, prof.Sofia University, Faculty of Philosophy,

Department of „Social, Work and Educational Psychology“

The increase in the number of old people is one of the greatest challenges for the health care system and social assistance system. Since Europe is the oldest continent the psychologists should be more aware about their role in contributing to improving the quality of life of old people.

A European research in the applied field of the geropsychology is highly recommended with regard to the psychological prevention of diseases and health promotion. More psychological efforts are needed for promoting healthy aging. Increasing life expectancy by the means of biomedical advances is not enough however.

The researches show that the individuals’ psychological condition contribute to the quality of life and well-being in old age, and the behavioral and psychological interventions could also prevent illnesses, improve cognitive functioning and physical fitness, enhance positive emotional functioning.

One of the most important premises for healthy care for the elderly is to perfect the psychological assessment. Human ageing cannot be described, predicted or explained without consideration its three main aspects; bio-medical, psychological and social. The focus of the current research is to explore the psychological peculiarities influencing the personality of the old people.

The dignity of old people is a complex of meanings. That complex of notions includes not only the physical status but the human relations factor – mostly, old people’s relations with families, friends and institutions. That complex is closely connected to the inner resources of old people. That means that from psychological point of view the dignity of old people depends on themselves at the same time.

In that context the human dignity can be described as a personal function of internal and external processes. So the quality of life of old people is determined to a great extent by their perception of how dignified their life is.

The quality of ageing is a function of the individual peculiarities and interindividual variance in the personal ageing process.

The gole of emphasizng the role of personal processes in the changed situation in old age and at the same time a transformation from objective to more subjective personal criteria is established.

The quality of ageing has to be considered and analyzed as a dynamic process of objective and subjective criteria filtered by the personal self-esteem of old people. So it could be emphasized that the quality of ageing depends of the personal choice and personal experience to a great extent. The dignity of the old people is a function of the quality of ageing.

The research is based on the optimistic point of view expressed in the theoretical approach of S. L. Rubinstein. A central point of view in that theory is the concept of “subjective activity or named as subjectness”– or the concept of the person as a creator of the relations with others and the self as creating their own. life.

One of the most important personal construct is the self esteem as a component of the subjectness. For example the test of E. Philips applied for the old people in Bulgaria. The results received show that the average levels are typical of the self - esteem of the old people with the tendency to the high levels .

Table1. Levels of the self esteem (%)

Levels of the self esteem Values %

High 8,3

Middle average 36,5

Average 43

Low 12,3

Total: 100

Table2. The levels of the self-esteem of the old people in two different age groups

Levels of the self esteemAge groups

Total60 – 74 age. Up to 74 age

High 8,2 5,5 7,7

Middle average 36,5 36,4 36,5

Average 44,3 40 43,4

Low 11 18,2 12,4

Total : 79,9 20,1 100

The value of α Crombach is . 853. It means that the questionnaire has good reliability and it can be considered to be a useful instrument for confirming the levels of the self-esteem in old age. In both age groups the average values of the self-esteem are prevalent, with tendency to be closer to the high level values.

The collected experimental data shows no significant correlation between age and levels of self-acceptance. In the research, approximately 20% of the researched old people show a slight tendency for deviation from the adequate levels of self-esteem, as well as from the preserved self-identification form.

The research results show in general that a lot of people of old age are in a preserved self-identification form, with average and adequate levels of self-esteem, predominantly with internal locus of control and manifesting average levels of anxiety.

The preserved „ subjective activity “ is a consequence of the above mentioned psychological peculiarities and it could be one of the basic and special psychological means providing internal psychological support and help for the old people.

The anxiety is established mostly at average levels or level below the average but obviously that is the group of old people that is in need of psychological support and care.

From a psychological point of view the quality of ageing depends on the self-esteem on one hand and it is a component of the “subjectness”, on the other hand. Speaking in such terms we can say that complex of personal characteristics determine the human dignity of old people.

The adequate self-esteem of the elderly requires a change in negative stereotypes towards old people on part of the institutions and the families, relatives and friends and the social environment as a whole. The dignity of the old people could be considered as an aspect of the quality of ageing and in that context a component of the active ageing at the same time.

The personal psychological peculiarities and especially the self-esteem could be an active personal resource that can support the subjective activity in the complex human care of the old people.

Thank you for your attention!