우울한 독거노인을 위한 긍정심리 기반 교육 프로그램의 효과

Abstract

This study aims to investigate if an education program based on positive psychology for the depressed elderly living alone is effective in reducing depression and promoting happiness. The research subjects were 15 depressed elderly people over 65 who were using the Seniors Welfare Center located in U Metropolitan City. Seven people were assigned to an experimental group, and eight to a control group to implement the education program based on positive psychology. The control group did not participate in the education program. As for the research tools, the Korean Short Geriatric Depression Scale (K-SGDS) and Happiness Scale (MUNSH Scale, translated by Jang Hye-kyung 1998) were used. The education program based on positive psychology was composed of a total of eight sessions, each for 90 minutes per week. As for the period, this program was implemented from May through July 2019. As for the verification of the effectiveness of the program, this study conducted a pre-and post-test and used Wilcoxon’s signed-ranks test with the experimental group and control group. For qualitative analysis, the contents evaluation for each session and changes by group members were analyzed. The results of this study can be summarized as follows: First, depression and happiness of the elderly living alone are very closely related. Second, after implementing the positive psychological-based education program, the depression of the elderly living alone decreased, and their happiness improved, and it could be verified that this program was effective in improving the depression and happiness of the depressed elderly living alone. This study proposes that it is necessary to implement many education programs based on positive psychology in the future.