title: Reliability and validity of a self-rated analogue scale for global measure of successful aging.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Dimension-specific objective measures are criticized for their limited perspective and failure to endorse subjective perceptions by respondents, but the validity and correlates of a subjective global measure of successful aging (SA) are still not well established. We evaluated the reliability and validity of a self-rated analogue scale of global SA in an elderly Singaporean population.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional data analysis using a comprehensive questionnaire survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  489 community-dwelling Singaporeans aged 65 years and over.
  
  
  METHODS
  Self-rated SA on an analogue scale from 1 (least successful) to 10 (most successful) was analyzed for its relationship to criterion-based measures of five specific dimensions (physical health and function, mental well-being, social engagement, psychological well-being, and spirituality/religiosity), as well as outcome measures (life satisfaction and quality of life).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Self-rated SA was significantly correlated to measures of specific dimensions (standardized β from 0.11 to 0.39), most strongly with psychological functioning (β = 0.391). The five dimension-specific measures together accounted for 16.7% of the variance in self-rated SA. Self-rated SA best predicted life satisfaction (R(2) = 0.26) more than any dimension-specific measure (R(2) from 0.05 to 0.17). Self-rated SA, vis-à-vis dimension-specific measures, was related to a different set of correlates, and was notably independent of chronological age, sex, education, socioeconomic status, and medical comorbidity, but was significantly related to ethnicity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The self-rated analogue scale is a sensitive global measure of SA encompassing a spectrum of underlying dimensions and subjective perspectives and its validity is well supported in this study.
authors.affiliation: Gerontological Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Hospital System, Singapore.
authors.forename: Xinyi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gwee
authors.affiliation: Gerontological Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Hospital System, Singapore.
authors.forename: Ma Shwe Zin
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Nyunt
authors.affiliation: Gerontological Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Hospital System, Singapore.
authors.forename: Ee Heok
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Kua
authors.affiliation: Sam and Rose Stein Institute for Research on Aging and the Departments of psychiatry and Neurosciences, University of California, San Diego, CA.
authors.forename: Dilip V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Jeste
authors.affiliation: Academic Unit of Psychological Medicine, Australian National University Medical School, Canberra, Australia.
authors.forename: Rajeev
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Gerontological Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Hospital System, Singapore. Electronic address: pcmngtp@nus.edu.sg.
authors.forename: Tze Pin
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Ng
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006304:Health Status; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D057566:Self Report; D012919:Social Behavior; D029181:Spirituality
keywords: Successful aging; measurement; reliability; validity