Life satisfaction of older Turks living in Australia.
OBJECTIVE
This study examined the influence of socio-economic and demographic variables, the frequency of travel to Turkey and years of living in Sydney on the life satisfaction of older Turkish people.


METHODS
This study was conducted with 110 participants of 60 years of age or older, at the New South Wales Turkish Welfare Association in Sydney, Australia. The surveys were administered face-to-face at a date and time these participants went to the Association. The dependent variable of the study was the Life Satisfaction Scale. The study data were analysed using hierarchical regression analysis, and the three sets of regression models were run for each sex.


RESULTS
The research found that in addition to sociodemographic factors, frequency of travel to Turkey, particularly for older women, and their years of living in Sydney had negative effects on life satisfaction. The study results indicate that the frequency of both the male and female participants' visits to Turkey had a strong negative influence on their life satisfaction. Life satisfaction decreased as the frequency of the participants' visits to Turkey and years of living in Sydney increased.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings support the current literature that shows the effects of the frequency of travel to Turkey and years of living in Sydney, which were considered to influence relationships with social networks, on life satisfaction, and indicates the necessity for a more detailed examination of social network relationships.
Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
Hülya
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2926-8006
H
Öztop
Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
Bahar
B
Kınacı
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009517:New South Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011788:Quality of Life; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012737:Sex Factors; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014195:Travel / Q000523:psychology; D014421:Turkey / Q000208:ethnology; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology*
Turkey; aging; satisfaction