Different concepts have been presented which denote driving forces and strengths that contribute to a person’s ability to meet and handle adversities, and keep or regain health. The aim of this study, which is a part of The Umea 85+ study, was to describe resilience, sense of coherence, purpose in life and self-transcendence in relation to perceived physical and mental health in a sample of the oldest old. The study sample consisted of 125 participants 85 years of age or older, who ranked themselves on the Resilience Scale, Sense of Coherence Scale, Purpose in life Scale and Self-Transcendence Scale and answered the SF-36 Health Survey questionnaire. The findings showed significant correlations between scores on the Resilience Scale, the Sense of Coherence Scale, the Purpose in Life Test, and the Self-Transcendence Scale. Significant correlations were also found between these scales and the SF-36 Mental Health Summary among women but not among men. There was no significant correlation between perceived physical and mental health. The mean values of the different scales showed that the oldest old have the same or higher scores than younger age groups. Regression analyses also revealed sex differences regarding mental health. The conclusions are that, the correlation between scores on the different scales suggests that the scales measure some dimension of inner strength and that the oldest old have this strength at least in the same extent as younger adults. Another conclusion is that the dimensions that constitute mental health differ between women and men.
Published in printed form 2009.