Mental Well-being as a Predictor of Quality of Life in Elderly Agricultural Workers

Purpose:In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the quality of life and perceived health status of agricultural workers over the age of 65 and to determine the relationship between quality of life and mental well-being. Methods:This cross-sectional study was conducted on elderly agricultural workers(196 people) living in a rural area in Aydın. The European Quality of Life 5-Dimensions 3-Level Questionnaire was used to assess quality of life and the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale(WEMWBS) was used to assess mental well-being. T test and logistic regression analysis were used for statistical evaluation. Results:The mean age of the participants was 70.92±6.22 and 50.5% of them were male. In study, three out of four people had experienced some problems in any dimensions of the quality of life. The participants' WEMWBS mean score was 47.12±7.79 and the mean perceived health status was 50.64±22.03. There was a positive and high correlation between mental well-being and perceived health level(r=0.432,p<0.001). Having problems in at least one of the dimensions about quality of life had increased with age[OR 1.17(95% CI 1.04-1.32)] and decreased with increasing mental well-being[OR 0.84(95% CI 0.78-0.90)]. Conclusion:This study shows that more than half of the elderly agricultural workers experience problems about the quality of life, their mental well-being is moderate, and age and mental well-being are determinants of quality of life. The needs of the increasingly elderly agricultural workers in our country should be evaluated in order to increase their mental well-being and quality of life, interventions should be planned for these needs.