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The Association between Social Participation and Loneliness of the Chinese Older Adults over Time—The Mediating Effect of Social Support

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  • Lijuan Zhao

    (School of Sociology, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China)

  • Lin Wu

    (School of Sociology, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China)

Abstract

Based on activity theory, this paper employed data from the 2013, 2015, and 2018 waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Survey, and adopted Hierarchical Linear Modeling and longitudinal mediation analysis to explore the temporal variation characteristics of loneliness and the influence of social participation on loneliness in Chinese Older Adults, as well as the mechanism of them. The study found that loneliness among older adults overall was at a moderate level from 2013 to 2018 and increased over time, which may be related to decreasing social participation from year to year. Decreased social participation was associated with increased loneliness over time (β = −0.060, p < 0.001) and lower social support (β = 0.109, p < 0.001), which was associated with more loneliness (β = −0.098, p < 0.001). In addition, social support played a significant mediating role in the realization of social participation in alleviating loneliness. Social participation can not only directly reduce loneliness, but also reduce loneliness by increasing social support.

Suggested Citation

  • Lijuan Zhao & Lin Wu, 2022. "The Association between Social Participation and Loneliness of the Chinese Older Adults over Time—The Mediating Effect of Social Support," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(2), pages 1-17, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:2:p:815-:d:722943
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Hongfeng Zhang & Peng Cheng & Lu Huang, 2023. "The Impact of the Medical Insurance System on the Health of Older Adults in Urban China: Analysis Based on Three-Period Panel Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-17, February.
    2. Shan Lu & Wonseok Oh & Ryozo Ooka & Lijun Wang, 2022. "Effects of Environmental Features in Small Public Urban Green Spaces on Older Adults’ Mental Restoration: Evidence from Tokyo," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-22, April.
    3. Shishuai Fan & Yifan Yang, 2022. "How Does Internet Use Improve Mental Health among Middle-Aged and Elderly People in Rural Areas in China? A Quasi-Natural Experiment Based on the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-14, October.
    4. Chi Zhang & Yinan Zhao & Xi Chen & Xiaoyang Li & Qingcai Liu & Ruotong Peng & Yifei Chen & Hui Feng, 2023. "Trajectories of Social Participation and Its Predictors in Older Adults: Based on the CLHLS Cohorts from 2002 to 2018," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-11, February.

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