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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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The SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) pandemic in Hong Kong
— effects on the subjective wellbeing of elderly and younger people | | Author(s) | Anna L D Lau, Iris Chi, Robert A Cummins |
| Journal title | Aging & Mental Health, vol 12, no 6, November 2008 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis, November 2008 |
| Pages | pp 746-760 |
| Source | http://www.tandfonline.com |
| Keywords | Respiratory tract diseases ; Well being ; Quality of life ; Evaluation ; Hong Kong. |
| Annotation | The impact of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in Hong Kong in 2003 on the subjective well-being (SWB) of older people and a younger comparative sample was examined. The Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI), a contemporary instrument used to measure SWB, was also examined for its psychometric performance and to substantiate its use. Data were collected in face-to-face interviews with 302 older people (age 65+) and 150 younger adults (age 35-46) recruited from different districts. While older people living in severely infected districts showed significantly lower levels of SWB, these levels and those of the younger sample were found to remain within the normative range. A major mitigating factor was an increased sense of community connectedness. Other characteristics linked to low well-being levels included chronic illness, female gender, low education and unemployment. The living districts, characterised by varying extents of infection, had stronger associations with SWB than participants' age. The PWI demonstrated good psychometric performance and also more robustness with older people, including its sensitivity to the sense of population threat. Psychological resilience was identified in both older and younger age groups in Hong Kong during the SARS pandemic. The PWI is verified as a suitable instrument for SWB measurements. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-090402206 A |
| Classmark | CN: D:F:5HH: F:59: 4C: 7DR |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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