According to the WHO, quality of life is the perception of one's own life situation in the context of cultural conditions, the value system and, in relation to objectives and norms. Table 6 represents the correlation coefficient between physical, mental and social health of older people and quality of life. To define the concept of quality of life in the elderly, the same generic definition established by Ferrans and Powers for the QLI was adopted to serve as the basis for the development of this instrument. Therefore, a review of the Brazilian literature on the quality of life of older adults was carried out, resulting in new domains and items that were added to the original version.
In addition, age-related factors affect health, a vital dimension for quality of life in old age, while a series of different social circumstances (retirement, widowhood, dependence, loss of autonomy and social roles, among others) can become obstacles to a better quality of life. The main contribution of this research relates primarily to the conceptualization of quality of life, including the importance of components of human functioning for quality of life. It should be noted that the instruments used to assess quality of life tend not to be adapted to older adults, either because of their one-dimensional approach or because older people who rate their quality of life as “good” may not be classified as such based on the interpretation of the instruments. Finally, it is important to note that the VITOR QLSE has undergone a reliability and validity verification process and can be recommended as a valid and reliable instrument for measuring the concept of quality of life in older people.
The scale constitutes a specific complementary instrument on quality of life in older adults that provides additional information on the phenomenon in this population, an area that lacks scientific, social and cultural information. With regard to the practical definition, according to Ferrans and Powers, in the present study, efforts were made to develop it to cover the specificities of the elderly population and, therefore, a list of categories relevant to the quality of life of older people was drawn up. Dijkers (200) argues that many years of research have been lost in the effort to operationalize the concept of quality of life without having a clear conceptualization of what it is. It has been documented that many issues related to these components of human functioning are important for quality of life and can better explain the conceptualization of quality of life.
In conclusion, programs to promote health and quality of life in low-income older people should focus actions on physical and environmental aspects of quality of life. Taking into account this diversity of cases or situations makes measuring quality of life in older people complex and challenging, given the multiple determinants of the construct in this population. With regard to the assessment of quality of life in older adults, few instruments have been developed that emphasize the elderly. The main differences between this instrument and others related to the quality of life of older people lie in the active participation of older adults in the scale design process. In addition, the VITOR QLSE includes domains that are also present in other scales (health, family, autonomy and social aspects), but it also contains domains on citizenship, the environment and physical independence, which represent new aspects and models in the quality of life of older people.
