Influence of personal mastery on mobility disability among older adults: A systematic review.

Purpose: Personal mastery is a psychological resource recognized as a domain of quality of life that helps individuals cope with life strains. Despite its relevance, there is a lack surrounding the relationship between mobility disability and personal mastery. This study aimed to investigate the influence of personal mastery on mobility disability among older adults and identify the mechanisms that underlie this influence.

Methods: A systematic review was conducted by searching four databases (i.e., PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and the Virtual Health Library of the Latin American and Caribbean Center on Health Sciences Information) using combinations of the following words: mastery, personal mastery, self-control, mobility, disability, older adults, older people, and aging. We summarized and analyzed the findings of cross-sectional and longitudinal/prospective studies.

Results: Twenty-one studies were included. There was high heterogeneity in how the studies had assessed mobility disability. Although a majority of the studies had used the Pearlin's Self-Mastery Scale (PSMS) to assess personal mastery, there were variations in the number of response anchors and scoring strategies that were used. Nevertheless, findings revealed that personal mastery influences mobility disability by acting as a protective resource against adverse outcomes among older adults. The authors of the reviewed articles had provided physiological and behavioral explanations for their findings.

Conclusions: Higher level of personal mastery can protect older adults from mobility disability, because it confers a sense of personal control, which in turn promotes positive physiological functioning and health behaviors. This knowledge contributes to the maintenance of physical functioning in old age.