title: [Effects of an empowerment program on the adjustment of older adults to nursing home life].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the empowerment intervention on the levels of self-esteem, interpersonal relationships and adjustment to nursing home life of the Korean nursing home residents.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants (n=47) whose period of stay was less than one year were purposefully selected from 3 nursing homes in Korea. The experimental group (n=21) attended 10 weekly hour-long empowerment sessions. The empowerment program comprised two components; group education and group discussion. The control group (n=26) received a two-hour education about health management.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared with the control group, the experimental group showed significantly higher mean scores of self-esteem (t=5.51, p<.001), interpersonal relationships (t=2.73, p=.009) and adjustment to nursing home life (t=2.10, p=.041).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings of this study suggest that empowerment interventions may be effective in enhancing nursing home residents' self-esteem, interpersonal relationships and adjustment to nursing home life. Future research is needed to determine if such an empowerment program could be used with newly institutionalized elders to speed as well as enhance their adjustment to nursing home life.
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, USA.
authors.forename: Aekyung
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Yeon-Hwan
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012649:Self Concept