Association between Social Capital and Happiness with the Mediation Role of Perceived Social Support in the Elderly in Qazvin ۲۰۱۷

Introduction and objective: Happiness is usually met with increases in life satisfaction, physical and mental health, quality of life and successful ageing. Given that happiness can be a very important factor in the quality of life of elderly people, therefore, the present study was aimed to examine the relationship between social capital and happiness with the mediation role of perceived social support in the elderly in Qazvin ۲۰۱۷.Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on ۳۰۹ elderly people living in Qazvin in ۲۰۱۷. The elderly were selected by cluster sampling method. Data were collected using the Oxford happiness, Bullen social capital and perceived social support questionnaires. Questionnaires were completed by researcher through face-to-face interview. Pearson, Spearman tests were used to determine the relationship between variables. To determine the role of mediation of perceived social support in the relationship between social capital and happiness, the bootstrapping method with ۱۰۰۰ replications was used. Data analysis was performed by SPSS software version ۲۲.Results: The mean age of the elderly was ۶۷.۵۶ ± ۶.۶۸ years and range from ۶۰ to ۷۵ years old. According to the results of this study, the average social capital, social support and happiness of the elderly participnts were ۶۶.۱۵ ± ۱۸.۹, ۵۴.۸۳ ± ۱۵.۳۴, ۴۹.۰۹ ± ۱۵.۳۰, respectively. The results also showed a positive and significant statistical relation between social capital and perceived social support and happiness (p <۰.۰۰۱). Furthermore, the results showed the mediation role of family social support (β = .۱۳۴, p <.۰۰۱) and others (β = -۱۰۳, p <.۰۱) in the relationship between social capital and happiness.Conclusion: The results of this study showed that social capital with the mediation role of social support can have a positive impact on the happiness of the elderly people. The elderly needs special support, particularly from family and friends, and understanding this support can increase the amount of their happiness. Therefore, it is necessary to take effective steps to set up or strengthen social support networks.

کلیدواژه ها:

Social capital ، Happiness ، Perceived social support ، ageing