SELF-REPORTED MEMORY PROBLEMS AMONG THE BLACK ELDERLY

In a sample of 240 black elderly people, 52% reported poor memory and forgetfulness, to be either very (15.4%) or somewhat (36.6%) serious problem for them. Regression analysis revealed that those black elderly people who had more chronic illnesses, who used a higher number of psychotropic drugs, who were older, and who expressed a higher level of loneliness were more likely to complain about their memory. Loneliness was found to be the strongest predictor of self-reported memory problems among the black elderly. These findings are discussed.