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Aim: The level of happiness of older adults is associated with their psychosocial and physical health. Currently, little is known about the predictors of happiness among older women living alone in the community. The present study aimed to identify these predictors. Methods: This was a cross‐sectional descriptive study of older women who were living alone and were registered with a social welfare center in an old urban area in South Korea. We designated various demographic factors along with health‐related information, perceived self‐esteem and depressive symptoms as independent variables predicting happiness. Descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis were carried out. Results: In total, 154 participants were recruited. They showed a moderate level of happiness. Furthermore, happiness was negatively correlated with the number of comorbidities, presence of pain and depressive symptoms, but positively correlated with self‐esteem. The final model in hierarchical regression showed that depressive symptoms were powerful predictors of happiness after controlling the covariates and accounted for approximately 76.7% of the total variances. Conclusions: The happiness of older women living alone was associated with their self‐esteem and depressive symptoms. Interventions aimed at reducing depressive symptoms and improving self‐esteem should be developed and applied to this population. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2019; 19: 352–356. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between social policy and late-life happiness by analyzing the impact of the basic old-age pension on the happiness of older people in South Korea.Design/methodology/approach People aged 65 and over selected from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing are analyzed in the study.Findings It shows that the association between the basic old-age pension and the happiness of older people is negative. This may be attributable to the frugality of the benefits and the side effects of the means test.Originality/value This implies that the relationship between social policy and late-life happiness is not linear but it is affected by the context of the policy. It suggests that changing the fundamental benefit system to be more progressive can be a more useful policy option to realize the initial policy goal for recipients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purposes of this study were to explore the effects of family cohesion and subjective happiness on death anxiety of Korean elders and to identify other factors contributing to death anxiety. Methods: The participants were 280 elders who lived in P metropolitan city. Data were collected between November 5, 2011 and January 12, 2012 using the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire (SPMSQ), Family Cohesion Evaluation Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale, and Fear of Death Scale (FODS). Data were analyzed using the SPSS/WIN 19.0 program. Results: Family cohesion, marital status, religious activity, perceived health status, and subjective happiness were included in the factors affecting death anxiety of Korean elders. These variables explained 50.1% of death anxiety. Conclusion: The results of the study indicate that these variables should be considered in developing nursing intervention programs to decrease death anxiety and increase family cohesion and subjective happiness for life integration in Korean elders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]