Beyond physical health: psychosocial resources and psychological distress in successful aging

OBJECTIVES: Successful aging (SA) is a multidimensional process shaped by physical, psychological, and social factors. However, how psychosocial resources interact with physical health to influence SA remains insufficiently understood, particularly in non-Western contexts. This study examined whether positive psychosocial resources and psychological distress mediate the association between physical health and SA. METHOD: The sample comprised 538 community-dwelling adults aged 60 years and older from Northeast Brazil. Latent constructs were assessed using validated instruments: physical health (pain, physical functioning, chronic conditions), psychological distress (depression, anxiety, perceived stress), and positive psychosocial resources (self-esteem, resilience, social support). SA was measured using the Successful Aging Scale. Analyses included confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and parallel mediation modeling with bias-corrected bootstrapping, controlling for demographic covariates. RESULTS: CFA demonstrated good model fit. Physical health was positively associated with psychosocial resources and negatively with psychological distress. Positive psychosocial resources fully mediated the physical health-SA relationship, whereas psychological distress showed no significant mediating effect. The direct effect of physical health on SA was nonsignificant. CONCLUSION: Physical health alone is insufficient to explain successful aging. Psychosocial resources play a critical role in translating health conditions into positive aging outcomes.