Iran Journal of Nursing

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Sheykhi A, Navidian A, Keykha R, Rezaee N. Effect of Reminiscence on the Happiness the Retired Elderly Members of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army. IJN 2019; 32 (119) :1-12
URL: http://ijn.iums.ac.ir/article-1-2937-en.html

Background & Aims: Aging is an inevitable biological process, which is associated with physical, psychological, and social changes. Studies have suggested that the retired elderly members of military forces have different life experiences than others, which are reflected in their wellbeing. These experiences may cause the loss of vitality and specifically happiness, which is a essential criterion of mental health. Reminiscence is considered to be a preventive and therapeutic intervention for the elderly, which affects various aspects of their social and mental health. Due to the aging population of Iran and the fact that the majority of the elderly are retired, the present study aimed to assess the impact of reminiscence on the happiness of the retired elderly members of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army (AJA).
Materials & Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted in winter 2018 on 90 retired men aged more than 60 years, who referred to the retired AJA personnel center. The participants were divided into two groups of experimental and control (45 subjects per each). The participants were selected via simple random method and assigned to the experimental and control groups by drawing lots. The inclusion criteria were the minimum retirement duration of six months, age of 60-70 years (young-elderly), physical and mental health for participation (as stated by the family members), adequate hearing as reported by the individual, acquiring the minimum score of seven for the cognitive assessment in the abbreviated mental test (AMT) for the screening of cognitive disorders in the elderly, written consent for participation, and living with a spouse. The exclusion criteria were absence of more than one session in the reminiscence intervention, severe family crisis during the study (e.g., loss of a family member), and group intolerance. Considering 95% confidence interval (CI) and 95% test power, the sample size of 34 subjects was determined for each group. Each group was assigned 45 subjects to compensate for the possible data loss, and 90 individuals were selected as the sample population. The experimental group received six sessions of reminiscence twice a week, and the duration of each session was 45-60 minutes at the retired AJA personnel center of Zahedan, Iran. Each session was implemented for 5-8 participants, and each participant was provided an average of 5-7 minutes for each meeting. While the control group received no intervention, a reminiscence session was held for these individuals at the posttest. Data were collected using a self-report questionnaire, which consisted of three sections. The first section included the personal data of the elderly individuals on age, education level, retirement period, number of children, and post-retirement employment. The second and third sections were the Oxford happiness questionnaire and AMT for the screening of cognitive disorders in the elderly. The questionnaires were completed on the first day before the intervention and two months after the reminiscence sessions at the posttest. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 16 using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, range) and inferential statistics (paired and independent t-test, Chi-square).
Results: The mean age of the participants in the experimental and control groups was 68 years, and all the subjects were married and had children. More than 57% of the subjects in the experimental group had a post-retirement job, and 42% were unemployed after retirement. The mean score of happiness in the experimental group increased from 48.82±3.51 to 56.51±6.14 after the intervention. In addition, the mean score of happiness in the control group increased from 47.66±6.99 to 49.68±7.96 after the reminiscence sessions. The mean score of happiness in the experimental and control groups was 7.68±5.43 and 2.02±6.70, respectively. The independent t-test indicated a significant difference in the happiness score of the study groups after the intervention (P=0.0001), and the mean score range of happiness was considered significant in both groups (P=0.0001). Additionally, the paired t-test showed a significant difference in the mean score of happiness between the experimental (P=0.0001) and control groups (P=0.04) before and after the intervention.
Conclusion: This study confirmed the positive impact of group reminiscence therapy on the happiness of the retired elderly. Since the elderly are fond of expressing memories, it is possible to use the therapeutic aspects of reminiscence to promote their vitality and mental health. Reminiscence is an appealing, simple, and inexpensive intervention, which could be employed to reduce the anxiety and stress of the elderly in various communities. According to this study, the level of happiness increased in the control group regardless of the intervention, suggesting that attention to the elderly replaced their passive state with an active and happy disposition. Therefore, such interventions are recommended in nursing homes and geriatric wards to create a congenial atmosphere. One of the limitations of this study was the physical health condition of the elderly, which occasionally caused their later arrival at the intervention sessions. In some cases, the relatives who were interested in accompanying their elders were allowed to attend the sessions as well. Another limitation was the experiences of war as the majority of the subjects tended to express unsettling memories (e.g., martyrdom of their friends), which created a gloomy atmosphere in the sessions. Therefore, it is advised that further investigations in this regard address the gradual impact and persistence of memories on the elderly in the form of longitudinal studies.