Effects of a Structured Physical Activity Program on Quality of Life in Older Adults: A Quasi-Experimental Study

TL;DR

An 18-week structured exercise program did not significantly improve quality of life in older adults compared to a control group.

Contribution

This study evaluates the impact of structured physical activity on multidimensional quality of life in older adults using a quasi-experimental design.

Findings

There were no significant Group × Time interaction effects in any WHOQOL-BREF domain.

A significant main effect of Time was observed for the Environment domain, showing a small overall decrease.

The structured exercise program did not lead to greater quality of life improvements compared to the control group.

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Quality of life is conceptualized as a multidimensional construct encompassing subjective well-being, health, and social functioning. Evidence suggests that engagement in physical activity contributes to higher quality of life scores among older adults, indicating that structured exercise programs can positively influence both physical and psychological domains in this population. The present study examined the impact of an 18-week structured physical exercise program on the quality of life of older adults, assessed through the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) instrument, which consists of four domains: physical health, psychological, social relationships and environment. A total of 86 participants were allocated to three groups: individual exercise (n = 31), collaborative exercise (n = 32), and a control group (n = 23). Quality of life was evaluated before and after the intervention using the WHOQOL-BREF. Results: Correlation analysis indicated strong relationships among the WHOQOL-BREF domains, both before and after the program. Repeated-measures analysis revealed no significant Group × Time interaction effects for any WHOQOL-BREF domain. A significant main effect of Time was observed for the Environment domain, indicating a small overall decrease across all groups during the study period. Conclusions: The structured exercise protocol did not lead to greater changes in quality of life compared to the control condition. Perceived environmental quality of life showed a small overall decrease over time across participants.