Abstract
Mental health research has traditionally focussed on identifying and measuring disorderspecific symptoms. Comparatively little has been done to measure changes in global wellbeing or resilience over the lifespan and there is currently not a ‘gold standard’ psychometric measure of resilience for use with older people in the UK (OPUK). The current study aimed to validate the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and establish normative data specifically for OPUK for the first time. It also aimed to assess whether scores on the CD-RISC differ between older people who have currently, previously and neverexperienced mental health problems. Overall, 171 UK residents aged between 65-97 years completed the CD-RISC along with measures of psychological wellbeing and physical health as part of this cross-sectional study. A principal components analysis subjected to a varimax rotation extracted five factors from the CD-RISC (personal competence, tenacity, perseverance, spirituality and close relationships). Internal consistency was good for the measure as a whole (Cronbach’s a=.94), and the mean score for the whole sample was 71.2
(SD=16.5). Participants who had previously experienced mental health problems
demonstrated the greatest level of resilience while participants who still struggled with mental health problems reported the lowest scores. In a multiple linear regression model, psychological wellbeing and general health were significant predictors of resilience in OPUK. Findings of the current study provide preliminary evidence that the CD-RISC is a reliable measure of resilience for this population. Implications for its use as an outcome measure in mental health services are discussed.
Date of Award | 15 Sept 2017 |
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Original language | English |
Awarding Institution |
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Supervisor | Catherine Hamilton-Giachritsis (Supervisor), James Gregory (Supervisor), Sarah Dexter-Smith (Supervisor) & Vaneeta Sadhnani (Supervisor) |