Assessment of the stress experienced by the senior citizens in Ernakulam district of Kerala

Ageing is a complex phenomenon accompanied by physiological, psychological and sound changes which often results in a decline in health status (Hemalatha, 1999). Ageing is a continuous process that begins with conception and ends with death. Ageing is not a disease but a biological process (Henry, 2000). Ageing is a gradual developmental process of biological, psychological, sociological and behavioural change that begins at the moment when an individual is born (Chandrasekhar and Bhooma, 1999). Ageing refers to the normal progressive and irreversible biological changes occurring in an individual’s life span (Natarajan, 1998). In spite of all efforts taken by the government and other agencies, the feeling of neglect and the condition of being abandoned are indeed leading to stress in the elderly population. This study was carried out using a sample of 307 elderly from old age homes and free living elderly from selected areas of Ernakulam district of Kerala. The tool used for the study consisted of a questionnaire prepared by the investigator and a standardized stress inventory. The study revealed that institutionalized elderly experienced high levels of stress in total than the free living elderly.