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Psychological well-being Asian style: The perspective of Thai elders

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Abstract

Psychological well-being is animportant aspect of life quality for olderadults. Asian elders may have a distinctlydifferent perspective from Westernersconcerning the meaning of psychologicalwell-being. Using qualitative researchmethods, this study focused on the views of Thai elders. In-depth interviews and focusgroup discussions were conducted with 67 Thaipeople aged 60 and over. Transcripts werecontent analyzed resulting in theidentification of five dimensions ofwell-being: harmony, interdependence,acceptance, respect and enjoyment. Whencompared to research in the United States, someof the dimensions of psychological well-beingwere distinct while others were overlapping. Implications are discussed in relation to thedevelopment of culturally-relevant measures ofwell-being.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Social Work, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Berit Ingersoll-Dayton

  2. College of Population Studies, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand

    Chanpen Saengtienchai

  3. Faculty of Nursing, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand

    Jiraporn Kespichayawattana & Yupin Aungsuroch

Authors
  1. Berit Ingersoll-Dayton
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  2. Chanpen Saengtienchai
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  3. Jiraporn Kespichayawattana
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  4. Yupin Aungsuroch
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Ingersoll-Dayton, B., Saengtienchai, C., Kespichayawattana, J. et al. Psychological well-being Asian style: The perspective of Thai elders. Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology 16, 283–302 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011984017317

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011984017317

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