Table 3.
Intervention effects in the total study group and the DS group, including a comparison of the experimental and control groups
| Total | Experimental | Control | Effect size [95% CI] | p-value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total group | n = 83 | n = 40 | n = 43 | |||
| GDS T0 | 11.5 (4.6) | 12.1 (4.6) | 11.0 (4.6) | 0.22 [-0.21; 0.65] | 0.31a | |
| GDS T1 | 7.5 (4.6) | 6.8 (3.9) | 8.2 (5.1) | -0.16 [-0.39; 0.09] | 0.22b | |
| ΔGDS | 4.0 (3.7) | 5.3 (3.1) | 2.8 (3.9) | 0.71 [ 0.26; 1.15] | 0.002a | |
| DS group | n = 60 | n = 30 | n = 30 | |||
| GDS T0 | 13.6 (3.5) | 13.8 (3.9) | 13.4 (3.1) | -0.01 [-0.29; 0.28] | 0.98b | |
| GDS T1 | 8.7 (4.8) | 7.4 (4.2) | 10.0 (5.0) | -0.56 [-1.07; -0.04] | 0.03a | |
| ΔGDS | 4.9 (3.9) | 6.3 (2.6) | 3.4 (4.4) | 0.81 [0.28; 1.34] | 0.003a | |
Values are presented as mean (SD). DS group: group with depressive symptoms, SD: standard deviation, GDS T0: Geriatric Depression Scale before the intervention, GDS T1: Geriatric Depression Scale after the intervention, ΔGDS: mental health improvement; a according to unpaired t test (effect size given by Cohens); b according to Mann–Whitney U test (effect size given as rank biserial correlation)