Correlates of perceived autonomy among elders in a senior citizen home: A cross-sectional survey

Background: Researchers have pointed out several factors that correlated with or influenced autonomy in older people. However, these studies covered only a range of socio-demographic or physical factors, while factors from psychosociological and spiritual domains remain ignored. Also, there is lack of quantitative research and publications in this area. Objectives: To explore factors related to autonomy among elders in a senior citizen home. Design: A cross-sectional design utilizing a correlational approach was adopted. Participants: A stratified random sample of 121 subjects older than 64 years was recruited at a senior citizen home. Methods: Questionnaires and interviews were used to collect data. The structured questionnaire consisted of five parts, each gauging socio-demographic information, life attitudes, frequency and satisfaction of social support, and autonomy. Descriptive and stepwise multiple linear regression analysis were used to analyze the data. Findings: Subjects had a high autonomy score (mean=3.63), with the greatest score in independence (mean=4.39), followed by individuality (mean=3.74) and freedom (mean=3.22). Multiple regression analysis showed that satisfaction of social support (β=.57), functional ability (β=.25), life attitudes (β=.20), and level of education (β=.14) significantly affected autonomy in these elderly subjects and explained 64.2% of the total variance of autonomy in this population. Conclusions: Findings from this study indicate that perceived autonomy is influenced by social support, functional ability, life attitude, and literacy among institutionalized elders.