The impact of positive psychological interventions on well-being in healthy elderly people

This systematic review aims to evaluate the impact of Positive Psychological Interventions (PPIs) on well-being in healthy older adults. Systematic review of PPIs obtained from three electronic databases (PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science) was undertaken. Inclusion criteria were: that they were positive psychology intervention, included measurement of well-being, participants were aged over 60 years, and the studies were in English. The Cochrane Collaboration Guidelines dimensions of quality control, randomization, comparability, follow-up rate, dropout, blinding assessors are used to rate the quality of studies by two reviewers independently. The RE-AIM (Reach, Efficacy, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance) for evaluation of PPIs effectiveness was also applied. The final review included eight articles, each describing a positive psychological intervention study. The reminiscence interventions were the most prevalent type of PPIs to promote and maintain well-being in later life. Only two studies were rated as high quality, four were of moderate-quality and two were of low-quality. Overall results indicated that efficacy criteria (89%), reach criteria (85%), adoption criteria (73%), implementation criteria (67%), and maintenance criteria (4%) across a variety of RE-AIM dimensions. Directions for future positive psychological research related to RE-AIM, and implications for decision-making, are described.