Artificial intelligence machine learning determined that self-rated isolation and poor health were the most significant factors contributing to depression in older adults, according to a recent study reported on by Psychology Today
The 56 factors analyzed spanned a number of categories including demographics, education level, employment status, marital status, number of people in the household, family, social network, interpersonal transactions, health and functional limitations, cognition, and mental health.
The AI used the random forest analysis method, which is an algorithm that uses a combination of decision trees to reach a result.
According to the researchers, depressed older adults face reduced quality of life and a higher risk for dementia and death, so screening for these variables among older adults may be valuable to identify those suffering from depression.