Abstract
PurposeThe purpose of this study was to develop a self-transcendence enhancement program and examine its effect on self-transcendence, spiritual well-being, and psychological well-being in elderly women who live alone. MethodsA self-transcendence enhancement program was developed through theory, literature review, and in-depth interviews. The theoretical framework came from the Psychoeducational Approach to Transcendence and Health intervention model based on Reed’s middle-range theory of self-transcendence. The program consisted of multiple modalities in a structured, theory-based program lasting for eight weekly sessions. Using a single-group pretest-posttest design, the program was tested on a group of 40 elderly women aged 75 to 84 years living alone in Daejeon, South Korea. Participants completed self-reported study questionnaires before and after the program at the elderly welfare center. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 24.0, with significance level set at .05. Paired t-test was used to compare mean differences before and after the program. ResultsThe mean age of the study participants was 79.1 years. After completing the program, the participants showed higher levels of self-transcendence (t=8.78, p<.001), overall spiritual well-being (t=8.30, p=.002), religious spiritual well-being (t=1.79, p=.040), existential spiritual well-being (t=6.75, p=.002), and positive affect (t=3.77, p=.001) than they did before the program. They also reported lower levels of depression (t=–7.59, p<.001) and negative affect (t=–6.15, p<.001). Conclusion The self-transcendence enhancement program developed in this study may be effective for improving the level of self-transcendence in elderly women living alone and helping them to attain spiritual and psychological well-being.
Highlights
Background/rationale In terms of well-being, elderly women who live alone appear to be a more vulnerable group than other demographic groups in Korea [1,2]
There were two specific objectives when designing the program: first, to develop a self-transcendence enhancement program based on self-transcendence theory by identifying attributes related to well-being experienced by elderly women living alone; and second, to examine the effects of the program on self-transcendence, spiritual well-being, and psychological well-being of elderly women living alone
Another study found that a self-transcendence program [4] reduced community-dwelling elderly people’s death anxiety and encouraged them to pursue lives led by meaning and purpose
Summary
Background/rationale In terms of well-being, elderly women who live alone appear to be a more vulnerable group than other demographic groups in Korea (hereafter, Korea) [1,2]. According to studies of the well-being of elderly women who lived alone, 61.7% belonged to the depressed group [1], with subjective well-being showing poor results for life satisfaction and positive emotions in addition to above-average negative emotions [3]. While the spiritual well-being of elderly women living alone was found to be slightly above average, it was lower than that of elderly people who lived alone overall [2,4]. The psychological and spiritual well-being of elderly women living alone is relatively poor due to Korean J Women Health Nurs 2021;27(2):128140
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