The Relationship between Loneliness and Life Satisfaction of the Elderly in Gorgan and Gonbad Cities

Background and Objective : Ageing is a sensitive period of life, and attention to the needs and an issue of this stage is a social necessity. The loneliness caused by lack of social relationship impacts on physical health, quality of life and life satisfaction of the elderly. Because of importance of this problem, we aimed at determining the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction in elder people.   Material and Methods : In study descriptive-correlational study, ۱۰۰ senior citizens living in Gorgan and Gonbad were selected via purposive sampling. ­We collected the data by loneliness and life satisfaction questionnaires and analyzed by descriptive statistics, Wilcoxon test, and Spearman correlation coefficient.   Results: The mean and SD (۱۴±۶) of loneliness are high and of life satisfaction are average (۲۴±۷). Based on spearman, the correlation between loneliness and life satisfaction is significant (p<۰.۰۱, r= ۰.۶). Also, there is significant difference between life satisfaction and education al level (p<۰.۰۱ ( .   Conclusion: In line with this study clarified the effect of loneliness on life satisfaction, we recommend having continual contact with the elderly to recognize their social relationships and beliefs, family and health staff training about aging to enhance the perceptive interactions and designing some educational, therapeutic and rehabilitation programs.   Keywords: Loneliness ، Life satisfaction ، Elderly

کلیدواژه ها:

Loneliness ، Life satisfaction ، Elderly ، احساس تنهایی ، رضایت از زندگی ، سالمندان