[Psychosocial characteristics of an initial sample of Puerto Rican centenarians]

This is the first research done in Puerto Rico presenting a basic socio-demographic profile of a sample of Puerto Rican centenary elderly that also includes psychological characteristics. The sample consist of eleven subjects, divided in five women and six men (mean age sample = 102.4 years) evaluated with a battery of psychological instrument that include the Symptom Checklist 90-R (SCL-90-R); the Beck Depressive Inventory (BDI-II); the Beck Suicide Scale (BSS); the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS); the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and the Folstein Mini-Mental. Main findings demonstrate that, with the exception of anxiety and hopelessness symptomatology, this particular sample is with a good psychological health. It is recommended to continue this type of research with a bigger sample and include other psychological and psychiatric screening instruments.