A descriptive-explanatory design was employed in this study. The purpose of this study was to identify the relationships among assertiveness, pattern of interaction, family function and depression of elderly in expanded families. A convenient sample of 96 families consisting of one elderly family member and their adult offsprings were recruited.
The results of this study are as follows:
1) The percentages of family types by FACI 8 were extreme type 4.3%, balanced type 11.7%, moderate type 24.5%, and midrange type 59.6%.
2) The most frequent activities of daily familly interaction were `watching TV together´ or `talking about daily concerns and problems each other´. The family also reported `accompanying to the hospital´ as the most frequent activity of unusual family interaction. However, those reported interactions in expanded families were relatively low.
3) The assertiveness of elderly was found significantly related to family member´s daily interaction (p <.001), attachment (p <.01), and changeability (p <.05).
4) The higher the attachment and changeability of family function, the more elderly´s depression; and a significant negative correlation was found between elderly´s depression and attachment (p <.05).
5) The regression analysis showed that elders´ assertiveness predicts 12% of family member´s daily interraction (p < .001), 7% attachment (p < .01), and 6% changeability (p < .05). Family member´s daily interaction predicts 7% of attachment (p < .05), and 6% of changeability (p < .05). The elders´ depression was significantly predicted by attachment (R2 = 5%, p < .05). Family member´s unusual interaction predicts 11% of changeability (p < .01). Perceived health condition
among general characteristics of elderly had significant predicting power on depression (R2 = p <.001).
6) The results of stepwise multiple regression ananlysis showed that perceived health condition, attachment and unusual family interaction together explained 20% of variance in elders´ depression, with 13%, 3.8%, & 3.2% of predicting power respectively. .
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