The Psychosocial Impact of an Earthquake on the Elderly

The psychosocial effects of an earthquake which occurred in Newcastle, Australia in 1989 are the focus of the Quake Impact Study, a four-phase community survey conducted over 2 years. Comparisons were made between adults aged less than 65 years (N=2371) and those aged 65 years and older (N=636). Results revealed that older subjects reported fewer threat and disruption experiences and used fewer general and disaster-related support services. However, older subjects reported higher overall levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms on the Impact of Event Scale (IES) compared with younger subjects. On both the IES and a general measure of morbidity (General Health Questionnaire: GHQ-12) the effects of earthquake exposure were more marked among the elderly. Within the older group, subjects who had high levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms (IES>25,N=117) were more likely to be female, report higher levels of exposure and use behavioural and avoidance coping styles. Although psychological distress declined with time, post-traumatic stress symptoms remained higher for the high exposure group throughout the study. We conclude that older people may be more at risk for experiencing post-traumatic stress reactions despite having fewer disaster-related experiences. They may also underutilize support services following a disaster. Older women in particular and people with an avoidance coping style appear to be most vulnerable.