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The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences Advance Access originally published online on February 9, 2009
The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 2009 64B(Supplement 1):i30-i37; doi:10.1093/geronb/gbn020
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© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.Permissions@oxfordjournals.org.

Quality of Life and Psychological Health Indicators in the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project

Sharon Shiovitz-Ezra1, Sara Leitsch2, Jessica Graber2 and Amelia Karraker3

1 Paul Baerwald School of Social Work and Social Welfare, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel
2 National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, Illinois
3 Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin at Madison

Address correspondence to Sharon Shiovitz-Ezra, PhD, Paul Baerwald School of Social Work and Social Welfare, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus 91905-IL, Jerusalem, Israel. Email: sharonshi{at}mscc.huji.ac.il


  Abstract

Background: The National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP) measures seven indicators of quality of life (QoL) and psychological health. The measures used for happiness, self-esteem, depression, and loneliness are well established in the literature. Conversely, measures of anxiety, stress, and self-reported emotional health were modified for their use in this unique project. The purpose of this paper is to provide (a) an overview of NSHAP's QoL assessment and (b) evidence for the adequacy of the modified measures.

Methods: First, we examined the psychometric properties of the modified measures. Second, the established QoL measures were used to examine the concurrent validity of the modified measures. Finally, gender- and age-group differences were examined for each modified measure.

Results: The anxiety index exhibited good internal reliability and concurrent validity. Consistent with the literature, a single-factor structure best fit the data. Stress was satisfactory in terms of concurrent validity but with only fair internal consistency. Self-reported emotional health exhibited good concurrent validity and moderate external validity.

Conclusions: The modified indices used in NSHAP tended to exhibit good internal reliability and concurrent validity. These measures can confidently be used in the exploration of QoL and psychological health in later life and its many correlates.

Key Words: Later life • Measurement • NSHAP • Psychological health • Quality of life

Received July 10, 2008; Accepted October 28, 2008

Decision Editor: Robert B. Wallace, MD, MSc


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