A SAD MARRIAGE: MARITAL SUPPORT AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN OLDER ADULTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES
Open Access
Author:
Karp, Laura Elizabeth
Area of Honors:
Biobehavioral Health
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Linda Ann Wray, Thesis Supervisor Linda Ann Wray, Thesis Supervisor Dr. Lori Anne Francis, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
Type 2 diabetes quality of life
Abstract:
The present study is focused on the widely supported relationship between social support and quality of life. We assessed whether depressive symptoms, exercise adherence, or demographic covariates mediated the relationship between marital support and quality of life in older patients with type 2 diabetes. The investigation utilized data from a pre-existing data set of 68 adults from Central Pennsylvania with type 2 diabetes between the ages of 50 and 82 years old. Stepwise regression analyses were conducted to identify mediating factors between marital support and diabetes-related quality of life, controlling for demographic variables. The most significant mediating factors were age and sex. Older men reported lower diabetes-related quality of life than did their younger female counterparts. Given the increasingly troublesome prevalence of type 2 diabetes across all ages but particularly in older adults, further research should focus on how health care practitioners can adjust treatment methods to meet the needs of older adults living with diabetes. Furthermore, preventing diabetes and its subsequent complications through better health education should remain a public health priority.
