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Learning Objective 1: EThe leaner will be able to understand importance of measure of autonomy among older adults.
Learning Objective 2: EThe leaner will be able to understand similarities and differences of autonomy between senior center and long-term care users in Japan.
Methods: A cross-sectional design was adopted using a questionnaire consisted of demographics and measurement regarding autonomy. PEA Short version contains 13 positively and negatively worded statements. There are 3 subscales: Voluntariness (4 items), Individuality (5 items) and Self-Direction (4 items). Cronbach’s alpha of PEA Short version was .922 and for subscales were .788 for Voluntariness, .817 for Individuality, and .800 for Self-Direction.
Results: In total, 369 older adults consisting of 220 for senior center and 149 for long-term care users participated in this study. The sample had a mean age of 76.9 years, and half of the subjects (51%) were male due to stratified sampling. Living arrangements were that 42% couple, 31% alone, and 18% three generations. Self-reported health status showed 31% good, 37% fair, and 30% bad. PEA scores were observed that 7 of 13 items were significantly different between two groups. In addition, Senior center users indicated significantly higher score Voluntariness although total score of PEA in both groups were similar.
Conclusion: Senior center users showed higher scores of Voluntariness, however, both groups indicated similar PEA total score. These results suggest that autonomy of long-term care users is not weakened due to their frailty.