Help-seeking for mental health problems among older adults with chronic disease: an application of the theory of planned behaviour

Figures & data

Table 1. Demographic characteristics of study participants (N = 107)

Variables				n (%)
Sex
Male				50 (46.7%)
Female				57 (53.3%)
Age (years)
65–75				59 (55.1%)
75–85				33 (30.9%)
85+				15 (14.0%)
Accommodation
Community				68 (63.6%)
Independent living facility				39 (36.4%)
Marital status
Married/de-facto				54 (50.5%)
Not in a current relationship				53 (49.5%)
Living arrangements
Living with a partner/family/friend				59 (55.1%)
Living alone				48 (44.9%)
Education
School up to year 10				32 (29.9%)
Year 11 and above				75 (70.1%)
Employment status
Employed				11 (10.3%)
Retired / unable to work				96 (89.7%)
Financial situation
Not able to save				38 (35.5%)
Able to save now and then				29 (27.1%)
Able to save regularly / a lot				40 (37.4%)
Private health insurance
Yes				66 (61.7%)
No				41 (38.3%)
Number of chronic diseases
One				73 (68.2%)
Two or more				34 (31.8%)
Ever diagnosed with a mental health condition (previous/current)
Yes				38 (35.5%)
No				69 (64.5%)
Past use of mental health services (self/family/friend)
Yes				33 (30.8%)
No				74 (69.2%)

Table 2. Mental health, quality of life, and overall functioning of older adults with chronic disease

Variables		M	SD
DASS-21^1
Overall distress		10.37	8.65
Depression		3.25	3.46
Anxiety		2.89	2.66
Stress		4.23	4.05
WHOQOL-BREF
Overall quality of life		4.14	0.76
Overall satisfaction with health		3.44	0.99
Physical		66.02	18.34
Psychological		70.97	13.92
Social		68.03	19.68
Environment		86.68	12.27
WHODAS
Overall physical disability		6.65	6.46

¹n = 91 for depression, anxiety, and stress scores. M = mean, SD = standard deviation.

Table 3. Attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control and intentions to seek help among older adults with chronic disease (rated on 7-point scales)

Variables	Mean	Standard Deviation	Mode
Attitudes	5.00	0.90	4.75
Subjective norms	3.95	1.10	4.00
Perceived behavioural control	6.02	0.72	6.75
Intentions	4.85	1.39	5.00

Table 4. Bivariate correlations between TPB model components

Variables	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
1. Intentions	1	.77**	.65**	.60**	.28**	.01	.01	−.01
2. Attitudes	.77**	1	.60**	.46**	.44**	−.02	.05	−.08
3. Subjective norms	.65**	.60**	1	.52**	.03	.14	.13	−.10
4. Perceived behavioural control	.60**	.46**	.52**	1	.11	.21*	−.06	−.17*
5. Past use of mental health services	.28**	.44**	.03	.11	1	−.29**	.14	.06
6. Overall quality of life	.01	−.02	.14	.21*	−.29**	1	−.40**	−.22*
7. Physical disability	.01	.05	.13	−.06	.14	−.40**	1	.19*
8. Number of chronic diseases	−.01	−.08	−.10	−.17*	.06	−.22*	.19*	1

*p < .05 **p < .001.

Table 5. Multiple linear regressions of traditional TPB and extended TPB models

Variables	B	SE B	β
Regression 1 Traditional TPB
Model TPB	−3.29	0.67
Attitudes	0.84	0.11	.54**
Subjective norms	0.24	0.09	.19*
Perceived behavioural control	0.50	0.13	.26**
Regression 2 Extended TPB
Model TPB	−3.18	0.87
Attitudes	0.82	0.13	.53**
Subjective norms	0.28	0.10	.23*
Perceived behavioural control	0.54	0.13	.28**
Past use of mental health services	−0.02	0.20	−.01
Overall quality of life	−0.15	0.12	−.08
Physical disability	−0.02	0.01	−.08
Number of chronic diseases	0.23	0.13	.10

Regression 1 R² = .70, Regression 2 R² = .71. *p < .05 **p < .001. B = unstandardized coefficient, SE B = standard error, β = beta.