Older women cope better with life crises than men
Older women cope better than men of a similar age following major life events such as divorce or death of a loved one, according to a new report by National Seniors Productive Ageing Centre.
Women, regardless of age and marital status, were more likely to report ‘stress related growth’ or SRG after such a life crisis, saying they had become more confident and made their own decisions, according to the National Seniors report How do mature age Australians cope with difficult life events?
The report, released today, states that one reason for women posting better SRG than men is that they are known to be more expressive with their feelings than men.
“The study highlights the need for greater support for those at risk of social isolation and depression,” says National Seniors chief executive Michael O’Neill.
“Older people have lifetimes of experience to draw from when it comes to facing personal crises. But if people live alone, have no family close by or otherwise don’t have the resources to help them cope, they may be unable to fully recover from a major life event.”
“This has increasing implications for public health policy as the population ages and is something that all governments and the community cannot afford to ignore,” Mr O’Neill says.
The study examined 1,923 survey responses to determine how mature age Australians deal with life crises.
The most frequently reported types of difficult life events were the death of a family member or a friend, retirement from work, change in health of a family member, major personal illness, changes in financial state and divorce.
Relationship issues and experiencing adverse changes in financial matters were much more likely to be reported as difficult life events by those who did not finish high school.
More than half of those who experienced an event reported using prayer or attending a church/mosque/synagogue as part of their coping strategy.
But a higher proportion (over 80 per cent) reported receiving help and support from someone close to them, such as their partner or spouse, parents or relatives who helped them to work through their problems, rather than just ‘giving up’.
