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The Flowers & Seniors Study examined senior citizens' levels of
depression, social contact and memory with and without the presence
of flowers. Participants were placed in one of four groups, each
receiving flowers at different intervals. A series of three interviews
was conducted throughout the six-month study, to measure changes
in participants' moods and behaviors. Participants also kept personal
daily logs to record social contacts and were given a memory test
at the conclusion of the study.
Study Participants
The study consisted of 104 participants (94 women, 10 men), ranging
in ethnicity, from ages 55-93. To prevent skewed or biased results,
participants did not know the purpose of the study.
Interviews
- Participants were given an initial
baseline interview to obtain data on moods, health, social support,
life satisfaction and demographic information.
- A second and third interview followed
to measure changes in feelings and behaviors.
- After the third interview, seniors
were tested on everyday personal memories, including their memories
of the flowers, of daily social contacts (based on the logs they
kept, see below), and on recent social events (also taken from
daily logs). Points were given based on the accuracy, specificity
and detail of the seniors' answers.
Flower Deliveries
Participants were randomly placed into four groups. Each group
received flowers at different intervals in the study, which they
were told were thank-yous for participating. Results were based
on how often the participants in each group received flowers (if
at all), at what point in the study they received flowers, and any
changes in mood and behavior that ensued. The groups included:
- The Early group: Received
a bouquet once - after the first (baseline) interview only. This
group had the flowers in time for the second interview.
- The Late group: Received
flowers once - before the last interview only. This group had
the flowers in time for the third interview.
- The All Flowers group:
Received flowers twice - before both the second and third interviews.
- The No Flowers group: Received
flowers only after the study was completed. They had no flowers
during any of the interviews.
Evaluation
Rutgers researchers tested participants for changes in their depression,
social contact and memory. Noting which flower group they were in,
the researchers used the following methods for measurement:
- One-on-one interviews - Seniors
were asked questions (see list of questionnaires below) about
moods and behaviors three times during the study.
- Daily logs - Participants kept
journals of daily contacts with friends, family and other supporters
such as medical people, neighbors, household helpers and religious
support.
- Memory tests - Seniors were tested
on everyday personal memories, which were coded according to the
degree of detail each participant gave about the item or event
they were asked to describe.
Questionnaires
The following questionnaires were asked of participants: Izard's
Differential Emotional Scale, Diener's Life Satisfaction Scale.
The standard social support measure, social contact logs and memory
tests also were evaluated.
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