Perceived Social Support and Depression Level Among Elderly Living in Institution

Abstract

The Elderly is commonly withdrawn and live alone due to a lack of social support, which impacts psychological issues. This study was conducted to identify the relationship between perceived social support and the level of depression among the elderly. This cross-sectional study enrolled 92 older people who lived at Rumah Seri Kenangan Cheng, Malacca. They completed the Multidimensional Scale for Perceived Social Support and Geriatric Depression Scale, which measured levels of social support and levels of depression, respectively. Findings indicated the elderly received moderate social support from family and friends, that affecting the level of depression in the elderly population. Keywords: Elderly, institutionalization, social support, depression. eISSN: 2398-4287 © 2022. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BYNC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians/Africans/Arabians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v7i20.3449