The relationship between the older adults' adaptation to old age and perceived social support level

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the relationship between the older people' adaptation to old age and perceived social support level. Materials and Methods: We conducted this descriptive study with 530 older people aged 65 and above in a training and research hospital. For data analysis, we used Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal Wallis-H test, Spearman's correlation analysis and multiple linear regression model. Results: We found that the total mean score for Assessment Scale of Adaptation Difficulty for the Elderly was 1.07 +/- 0.73 and the total score for Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support was 37.30 +/- 13.36. There was a statistically significant relationship between the older people' total mean Assessment Scale of Adaptation Difficulty for the Elderly scores and total Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support scores. In addition, age, gender, marital status, education and income level, chronic disease presence variables were found to affect adaptation to old age. Conclusion: The level of social support for the older people can be important in ensuring the adaptation to old age. We recommend that the health personnel regularly assess the older people' adaptation to old age and social support sources.