Self-Regulation Strategies Among Community-Dwelling People Aging With Arthritis and Multimorbidity

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Health Psychology
• Rheumatology

Background:

• Self-regulation strategies of selection, optimization, and compensation (SR-SOC) are crucial for managing chronic conditions like arthritis.
• Older adults with arthritis and multimorbidity face unique challenges in self-management.
• Understanding factors influencing SR-SOC is vital for improving quality of life.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe health resources and chronic disabling symptoms in community-dwelling older adults with arthritis and multimorbidity.
• To investigate how these factors influence and predict the use of SR-SOC strategies.
• To identify predictors of SR-SOC strategy use for managing arthritis multimorbidity.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional survey of 140 individuals aged over 50 years.
• Data collected on demographics, comorbidities, health resources, symptoms, and SR-SOC strategy use.
• Descriptive statistics, correlations, and multivariate hierarchical stepwise regressions were employed.

Main Results:

• Lower health literacy, healthcare provider communication quality, and smaller social networks were less frequently reported.
• Significant predictors of SR-SOC strategy use included physical symptoms, healthcare provider communication quality, and age.
• These factors explained a significant portion of the variance in SR-SOC strategy use.

Conclusions:

• Physical symptoms and communication quality with healthcare providers are key predictors of SR-SOC strategy use in older adults with arthritis and multimorbidity.
• Improving symptom management and communication can promote effective self-regulation.
• Findings support interventions aimed at enhancing self-regulation for better arthritis management in aging populations.