Factors associated with happiness among community-dwelling older adults: a systematic review

Objectives: To identify factors associated with self-reported happiness among community-dwelling older adults.

Methods: A systematic review of the literature was conducted. Searches were conducted in the PsycInfo, Web of Science, Scopus and Pubmed databases for relevant articles published in English, Spanish or Portuguese using the following search strategy and Boolean operators: (happiness*) AND (elder* OR (old adult*)). No restriction was imposed with regards to year of publication. This review was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42018107302).

Results: Forty-six articles met the eligibility criteria and were included in the review. Economic, social and health-related factors were associated with happiness among community-dwelling older adults. The sociodemographic characteristics of older adults, such as the female sex, being married, an older age, a higher level of schooling and having a religion, were also associated with happiness.

Conclusions: The articles included in the present systematic review demonstrate that social, economic and health-related aspects have an association with happiness in community-dwelling older adults.