Differences in locus of control and depressive symptoms in older adults

Abstract

Different research reports that perceived control in older adults influences their quality of life, including their physical and mental health. When perceived control is attributed to external agents such as fate, these are events that may be related to depression, especially in older adults, findings of the correlation between external control and clinical depression have been reported. The purpose of this research was to identify the differences in locus of control and depressive symptoms in older adults. A total of 181 older adults from Mexico City (M=69, SD=7.04) voluntarily completed the Beck Depression Inventory and the Locus of Control scale. The results indicate that the locus of control tends to decrease with severe depressive symptoms in older adults, which assumes that if there is a predominance of beliefs that regardless of what they do, the probability of depressive symptoms will increase. These are events that will have a negative impact on their physical and mental health.