Comparing Depression and Anxiety Symptoms among elderly Puerto Ricans and Other Hispanics

The mental health needs of elderly Hispanics have received relatively little research attention (Iannotta, 2002; Akincigil et al., 2012). Research literature tends to lump elderly populations among the 18 and over categories, presenting contradicting results among research findings associated with elderly Hispanic mental health issues. A secondary analysis was performed on the Primary Care Research in Substance Abuse and Mental Health for the Elderly (PRISM-E) dataset (Levkoff et al., 2004). PRISM-E was a randomized clinical trial of integrated primary care-mental health treatment with 2,244 elderly primary care patients from 11 study sites across the U.S. The Center of Epidemiological Studies – Depression Scale (CES-D) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) were used to assess elderly participants for depression and anxiety. Performing an OLS regression model that was unadjusted for related characteristics, CES-D baseline scores indicate that all Hispanics are 9.5 points higher than Whites, but those born in Puerto Rico are 7 points lower on the CES-D than are other reported Hispanics. Both Blacks and Asian Americans are higher on CES-D (by 2.4 and 15.3 points respectively) than Whites. However, results on the BAI present no differences between those elderly born in Puerto Rico and other Hispanics, as well as no differences between Whites, Blacks, and Asian Americans. Preliminary findings indicate that elderly Hispanics should be considered as individuals from different ethnic backgrounds rather that one all-inclusive group. Future analysis will examine whether these differences are moderated by adjustments for family and social support systems, socioeconomic factors, and cultural beliefs.