Abstract

As the population of older adults continues to rise, the prevalence and incidence of psychopathology in this group will increase as well. The most common psychopathologies observed in older adults include depression, anxiety, and mild cognitive impairment. These conditions are often co-occurring; however, few interventions are designed to simultaneously address all three. We examined whether the LLU WISDOM adult partial outpatient program was effective in reducing depression and anxiety, as well as improving cognitive function in a sample of older adults. We hypothesized that compared to a control group receiving usual clinical care, participants in the WISDOM program will demonstrate significantly greater improvement in scores on the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), Geriatric Anxiety Scale (GAS), and on the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS), after controlling for demographic covariates. The sample consisted of 12 participants (7 control and 5 WISDOM), who were 50.0% female with an average age of 71.9 years. The WISDOM group did not significantly improve on GDS, GAS, RBANS Immediate Memory, Attention, Delayed Memory Index, and Total Scale Index scores (ps > .05) from baseline to the end of treatment compared to the control group, controlling for covariates. Overall, both the WISDOM and control groups did not exhibit significant changes in depression, anxiety, or RBANS scores from the beginning of the treatment program to the end of the program. Clinically, it is important to note that while the WISDOM and control participants did not significantly improve in mood and cognitive function, these participants did not become significantly worse either. Overall, this study elucidates the complexity of the relationship between depression, anxiety, and cognitive function in older adults. It also sheds light on the study design limitations and intricacies inherent to further investigation of the relationships between the effects of treatment on depression, anxiety, and cognitive function.

Keywords: Older adult, geriatric, depression, anxiety, mild cognitive impairment, attention, immediate memory, delayed memory

LLU Discipline

Psychology

Department

Psychology

School

School of Behavioral Health

First Advisor

Grace J. Lee

Second Advisor

Kelly R. Morton

Third Advisor

Carolina Osorio

Fourth Advisor

David A. Vermeersch

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Degree Level

Ph.D.

Year Degree Awarded

2021

Date (Title Page)

3-2021

Language

English

Library of Congress/MESH Subject Headings

Aged - psychology; Depression; Cognitive Dysfunction; Anxiety

Type

Dissertation

Page Count

x, 55 p.

Digital Format

PDF

Digital Publisher

Loma Linda University Libraries

Usage Rights

This title appears here courtesy of the author, who has granted Loma Linda University a limited, non-exclusive right to make this publication available to the public. The author retains all other copyrights.

Collection

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Collection Website

http://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/etd/

Repository

Loma Linda University. Del E. Webb Memorial Library. University Archives

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