Iranian Journal of War and Public Health

introduction: The growing population of ageing people is linked to the appearance of the problems related to the well-being and quality of life (QoL) of elderly in developing countries. The impact of psychological factors on the QoL has already been proven. However, socio-demographic factors and place of living (i.e. rural and urban settings) have not been sufficiently studied. Thus, this study attempts to examine the connection between socio-demographic factors, place of living and the quality of life of the elderly in West Sumatra, Indonesia

methode:  This cross-sectional research was conducted on 400 community-based elderly people aged ≥ 60 years old. The method of random sampling has been used employing two-stage stratified random sampling technique among both rural and urban inhabitants of West Sumatra, Indonesia. WHO Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire was used for assessing QoL of the subjects. Data analysis included bivariate analysis and the factors that influence QoL were identified through multivariate linear regression analysis.

Results: The bivariate analysis indicated significant connections between the QoL and education, gender, marital status and living area (p < 0.05). In the multivariable regression analysis, higher education level (β = 0.111; p = 0.001), female gender (β = 0.107; p = 0.002), and being married were positively associated with QoL. In contrast, rural residence was negatively associated with QoL (β = −0.084; p = 0.010).