Psychological aspects of the problem of the older adults’ health worsening

Introduction. Under consideration is the problem of subcrisis of late adultness connected with the awareness of the fact of health worsening and aging body, the constructive solution of which is an essential element of the culture of aging. The aim of the research is to reveal phenomenology and make a comparative analysis of life psychological aspects related to health worsening of the elderly and old people. Materials and Methods. The method employed is a half-structured interview. The sample included 36 respondents: 24 respondents of 55/60-74 years of age (the elderly), 12 respondents of 75-86 years of age (old people). Results and Discussion. The data obtained enabled the author to reveal both similar and peculiar features of elderly and old people behaviour in regard to their health. In general, the fact of health worsening is considered by the respondents as an inevitable attribute of aging. The elderly people are worried about somatic diseases, work efficiency decrease, the old people besides the mentioned fears are anxious about mental problems. The majority of elderly and old people associate the maintenance and preservation of their health with scheduled applying to a doctor and healthy life style. However, these views are not always reflected in the behaviour. Conclusions. The elderly people are careful about their health occasionally, while the old people more frequently revise their lifestyle. With the age the character of social support in case of disease is changing.