A new study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, finds that seniors with disabilities rated dignity and control as the two most important factors tied to overall quality of life.

The study, conducted by the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco, interviewed adults with a mean age of 78, who required assistance with an average of 2.4 activities of daily living. Participants were asked to rate their quality of life on a 5-point scale. Eighty-seven percent of respondents rated their quality of life from fair to very good, which were all options in the middle of the spectrum.

When asked about the factors they considered most important to their quality of life, participants rated dignity and a sense of control as more important than any other factor. This emphasis on dignity and control was seen in both genders and in all ethnic groups. “By ‘control,’ these elders mean a sense of autonomy in their activities of daily living,” explained lead author Jennifer King, MD. “Because of disability, not all of them are able do to all activities on their own, but they want to feel they have some say in how those activities progress throughout the day.” Other factors such as pain, religion, and social interactions influenced seniors’ quality of life but were not as closely tied.

Read more about the study: “Quality of Life in Late-Life Disability: I Don't Feel Bitter Because I Am in a Wheelchair.”

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