Quality of life predictors in the aging European population: a multigroup model based on SHARE

The objective of this research is to analyze several predictors of quality of life in aging people in different European regions. This is a cross-sectional study with the sixth wave of the SHARE project (Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe). Several sociodemographic and economic indicators were utilized, as well as the CASP-12 (QoL), EURO-D (depressive symptoms), and SPHEU (self-perceived health). Analyses were performed by structural equation modelling techniques. Ten multigroup models were estimated. Results showed significative difference in the predictive capacity in all variables except for chronic diseases. The best predictor of quality of life in all European regions was absence of depression, followed by income, and self-perceived health. No significative differences among the predictive capacity of the number of chronic diseases was found among the assessed groups, although, perceiving ones’ health as good and being able to make ends meet were heavy predictors of quality of life. Our results suggest that although QoL might be unevenly predicted by different factors across the four European regions, they all concur in these three main factors: absence of depression, income, and self-perceived health. These findings might be useful to contribute to the development of customized policies targeting the main factors for the improvement of QoL to ensure successful aging.