Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Older adults in western countries have been shown to rely on friends support as they age. However, the culture of filial piety in Asia may result in reliance on family support among older adults in Asia. This study aims to identify the source of social support and the type of social support associated with depression among community-dwelling older adult in Asia. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted in six databases on 11th January 2018. Inclusion criteria were English studies conducted in Asia among community-dwelling older adults examining the association between social support and depression. Studies were screened, analysed and reported according to the PRISMA guidelines. RESULTS: A total of 16356 articles were screened and a final 24 articles were included in the review. The results revealed that older adults who have larger social network consisting of mostly family was associated with reduced depression compared to having friends. Higher family social support was associated with lower depressive symptoms compared to friends support. The most common type of support measured was emotional and instrumental support. Both were found to be associated with reduced depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: Family support, emotional and instrumental support are associated with lower depressive symptoms among community-dwelling older adults in Asia. Our review emphasised the importance of family support in reducing depressive symptoms. Therefore, policies which encourage family support must be included in developing programmes of preventing depression among older adults in Asia.
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@proceedings{APCPH-2019-177,
title = {Friends or Family in an Ageing Asia: A Systematic Review.},
author = {Tengku Amatullah Madeehah T Mohd and Raudah Yunus and Noran Naqiah Hairi and Farizah Hairi and Choo Wan Yuen},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-07-22},
urldate = {2019-07-22},
journal = {6th Asia-Pacific Conference on Public Health 2019 Proceedings},
issue = {6},
abstract = {INTRODUCTION: Older adults in western countries have been shown to rely on friends support as they age. However, the culture of filial piety in Asia may result in reliance on family support among older adults in Asia. This study aims to identify the source of social support and the type of social support associated with depression among community-dwelling older adult in Asia. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted in six databases on 11th January 2018. Inclusion criteria were English studies conducted in Asia among community-dwelling older adults examining the association between social support and depression. Studies were screened, analysed and reported according to the PRISMA guidelines. RESULTS: A total of 16356 articles were screened and a final 24 articles were included in the review. The results revealed that older adults who have larger social network consisting of mostly family was associated with reduced depression compared to having friends. Higher family social support was associated with lower depressive symptoms compared to friends support. The most common type of support measured was emotional and instrumental support. Both were found to be associated with reduced depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: Family support, emotional and instrumental support are associated with lower depressive symptoms among community-dwelling older adults in Asia. Our review emphasised the importance of family support in reducing depressive symptoms. Therefore, policies which encourage family support must be included in developing programmes of preventing depression among older adults in Asia.},
note = {Type: POSTER PRESENTATION; Organisation: Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Islamic Science University of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia., Department of Public Health Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Sg Buloh Campus, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia},
keywords = {Asia, Depression, Older adults, social support, systematic review},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {proceedings}
}