Predictors Of Self-reported Health Research Articles

Predictors of self-reported health and psychological distress among recently released Canadian Armed Forces Veterans

ABSTRACT Recent research has found that, while the majority of Veterans report a positive adjustment to post-service life, the number who report experiencing transition difficulties is increasing. This study aims to describe some of the predictors of general health, mental health, and psychological distress, with a focus on recently released Canadian Armed Forces Veterans. Analysis was performed on a sample of Veterans (N=909) who released in the past five years. Separate stepwise logistic regression models explored the odds of reporting each negative health outcome, first controlling for individual and military characteristics, then exploring the relative associations of well-being indicators. Presence of chronic physical and mental health conditions was associated with all negative health outcomes. Other indicators associated with a higher likelihood of negative health outcomes included dissatisfaction with one’s main activity since retirement, having a low sense of community belonging, being disabled and not being in the workforce. Higher mastery was associated with a lower likelihood of distress and poor general health, and was marginally significantly associated with a lower likelihood of poor mental health. The results demonstrate the importance of individual factors, social integration, and chronic health conditions in predicting the health outcomes of recently released CAF Veterans.

Predictors of self-reported health among the elderly in Ghana: a cross sectional study

BackgroundSelf-reported health is a widely used measure of health status across individuals. As the ageing population increases, the health of the elderly also becomes of growing concern. The elderly go through life facing social, economic and financial hardships. These hardships are known to affect the health status of people as they age. The purpose of this study is to assess social and health related factors of self-reported health among the elderly in Ghana.MethodsA multivariate regression analysis in form of a binary and ordinal logistic regression were used to determine the association between socioeconomic, demographic and health related factors, on self-reported health. The data used for this study was drawn from the World Health Organization (WHO) Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (SAGE) Wave 1.ResultsIn total, out of 2613 respondent, 579 (20.1%) rated their health status as poor and 2034 (79.9%) as good. The results showed that the odds of reporting poor health was 2.5 times higher among the old-old compared to the young old. The elderly with one or more than one chronic condition had the odds of 1.6 times and 2 times respectively, of reporting poor health. Engaging in mild to moderate exercise increased the chances of reporting poor health by 1.8 times. The elderly who had never worked in a lifetime were 2 times more likely to report poor health. In the same way, residents of Eastern and Western parts of Ghana were 2 times more likely to report poor health compared to those in the Upper West region. Respondents with functional limitations and disabilities were 3.6 times and 2.4 times respectively, more likely to report poor health. On the other hand, the odds of reporting poor health was 29, 36 and 27% less among respondents in the highest income quintiles, former users of tobacco and those satisfied with certain aspects of life respectively. Also, current alcohol users were 41% less likely to report poor health.ConclusionThe health status of the elderly is to an extent determined by the circumstances in which they are born, grow and live. The findings suggest that addressing social issues faced by individuals in youthful age will go a long way to achieving good health in the future. People with physical limitations and disabilities are most vulnerable to unmet healthcare needs and support system from government, policy makers and family.

Socioeconomic Status and Health Well-Being during Later Life: Potential Mediating Factors

This study explores the socioeconomic status (SES)-perceived health association, with special attention on living arrangements. It improves upon existing explanations of causal mechanisms underlying the impact of SES on health among the elderly. Using Health and Retirement Study to run ordered logistic regression, it addresses the importance of living arrangements for self-reported health. Income and education are both important predictors of self-reported health and that after controlling them, living arrangements also affect self-reported health. Future research should highlight nuanced measures of living arrangements and should explore longitudinal analyses to determine the long-term effects of these factors on self-reported health.

Quality and quantity: The role of social interactions in self-reported individual health

The public health literature on the detrimental effects of social isolation has shown that the quantity of social connections is positively correlated with individual health. Drawing on pooled cross-sectional data, we test this hypothesis on a representative sample of the Italian population. Our findings show that, in addition to the quantity of interactions, it is their quality – as measured by subjective satisfaction derived from relationships with friends – that works as the best predictor of self-reported health. The frequency of meetings with friends is significantly and positively correlated with good health in all regressions. However, when we add our measure of the quality of relationships to the probit equations, the statistical significance of “quantitative” measures is scaled down. Satisfaction with relationships with friends exhibits a positive and highly significant coefficient. Results of the multivariate probit analysis point out the potential role of unobservable variables suggesting the existence of endogeneity problems which require further investigation. We point out the existence of health disparities based on socio-economic status. There is a higher probability that poorer and less educated individuals report poor health conditions. The risk is even higher for unemployed and retired workers. This paper contributes to the literature in two substantive dimensions. This is the first empirical study of the relationship between social interactions and health in Italy. Second, we add to previous empirical studies by taking into account not only the frequency of various kinds of meetings but also indicators of their “quality”, as measured by agents’ subjective satisfaction with their social participation. The reliability of the analysis also benefits from the uniqueness and comprehensiveness of our dataset, which tries to overcome a structural deficiency in Italian data by merging information on agents’ behaviours and perceptions with data on household income.

Trait Anxiety and Achievement Goals as Predictors of Self-Reported Health in Dancers

Psychological characteristics associated with interpreting situations as stressful can impact peoples physical health. The present investigation focused on trait anxiety and achievement goals as two such characteristics that may predict health outcomes in dancers, a group prone to chronic stress and injury. Students enrolled in a university dance program (N = 109) completed measures of trait anxiety, achievement goals for dance classes, and current health at the start of an academic term. Health was assessed again at the end of the term. Greater trait anxiety predicted poorer health at the end of the term when controlling for initial health. In addition, the more dancers wanted to avoid performing worse than others (performance-avoidance goals), the poorer was their physical health at term's end. It is concluded that anxiety and performance-avoidance goals may hinder dancers’ ability to cope with the physical stress associated with a dance career.

Psychiatric and Psychological Predictors of Self-Reported Health of African Americans With Severe Mental Illness

Psychiatric and Psychological Predictors of Self-Reported Health of African Americans With Severe Mental Illness

Predictors of Self-Reported Health Among Older African-American Central City Adults

Relationships between holistic factors and self-reports of health were examined. Ninety-two African-American older adults were sampled. Comorbid health conditions, higher pain intensity ratings, and more depressive symptoms were significantly related to lower self-rated health scores while age, marital status, education, and spiritual factors were not significantly related.

Ten Dimensions of Health and Their Relationships with Overall Self‐Reported Health and Survival in a Predominately Religiously Active Elderly Population: The Cache County Memory Study

To document the extent of healthy aging along 10 different dimensions in a population known for its longevity. A cohort study with baseline measures of overall self-reported health and health along 10 specific dimensions; analyses investigated the 10 dimensions as predictors of self-reported health and 10-year mortality. Cache County, Utah, which is among the areas with the highest conditional life expectancy at age 65 in the United States. Inhabitants of Cache County aged 65 and older (January 1, 1995). Self-reported overall health and 10 specific dimensions of healthy aging: independent living, vision, hearing, activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, absence of physical illness, cognition, healthy mood, social support and participation, and religious participation and spirituality. This elderly population was healthy overall. With few exceptions, 80% to 90% of persons aged 65 to 75 were healthy according to each measure used. Prevalence of excellent and good self-reported health decreased with age, to approximately 60% in those aged 85 and older. Even in the oldest old, the majority of respondents were independent in activities of daily living. Although vision, hearing, and mood were significant predictors of overall self-reported health in the final models, age, sex, and cognition were significant only in the final survival models. This population has a high prevalence of most factors representing healthy aging. The predictors of overall self-reported health are distinct from the predictors of survival in this age group and, being potentially modifiable, are amenable to clinical and public health efforts.

How accurate are Townsend Deprivation Scores as predictors of self-reported health? A comparison with individual level data

To determine the accuracy of area based Townsend Deprivation Scores (TDSs) as proxies for individual level deprivation and to compare the ability of TDSs and individual level measures of deprivation to predict selfreported health. Using data from a self completed health and behaviour survey sent to a random sample of households in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, the ability of TDSs, calculated at the enumeration district and ward level, to predict selfreported health was compared to that of an individual level measure of deprivation similar to TDSs. The correlation between each of these measures of deprivation was also investigated. Enumeration district TDSs were similarly predictive of self-reported health as the individual level measure of deprivation. Ward-level TDSs showed a much weaker association with self-reported health. Although statistically significant, no deprivation measure accounted for more than 3 per cent of the variation in self-reported health. There was a strong correlation between the individual level measure of deprivation and enumeration district, but not ward-level TDSs. TDSs calculated at the enumeration district level are strongly correlated with a similar measure of deprivation calculated at the individual level and are similarly predictive of health. This is not the case for TDSs calculated at the ward level. Enumeration district TDSs are good proxies for individual level deprivation in Newcastle upon Tyne. This may not be the case in more mobile populations.