The purpose of this study was to attempt an accurate understanding of the quality of life and
provide basic materials for application to nursing research, intervention and further theoretical development. Data, obtained from such research methods as the lexical and literature review and the in-depth interview with the aged, were analysed according to Walker and Avant´s(1995) process of concept analysis. The concrete stage of analysis comprised 1) identification of the usage range of the quality of life, 2) identification of the attribute of quality of life, 3) presentation of diverse cases of the concept of the quality of life, 4) identification of antecedent elements and the outcomes of subjective judgement and 5) experiential reference of the concept of the quality of life.
As a result of analysis, it was found that the attributes of the concept of the quality of life included individuality, locational perception, orientation, filling up, vitality andproactiveness. There was the coexistence between antecedent element and the outcomes of subjective judgement - satisfaction/dissatisfaction, happiness/unhappiness, enjoyment/sorrow, comfortableness/frustration, which indicates the coexistence of positive and negative emotions. Therefore, nursing intervention should be provided for aged by concentrating focus on the coordination of internal and external situations in order to prompt them to express their life with positive emotions. Experiential reference was used to suit the purpose of this study based on the use of objective and subjective indicators, and the development of the instrument considering the aged was proposed because of the absence of the unified measurement instrument.
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