East or West, Home is the Best: Effect of Intergenerational and Social Support on the Subjective Well-Being of Older Adults: A Comparison Between Migrants and Local Residents in Shenzhen, China

How is intergenerational emotional cohesion linked to depression among older internal migrants in China: the mediating roles of loneliness and perceived stress

BACKGROUND

Late-life internal migration is frequently associated with a higher risk of depression in older parents. This research delves into the impact of intergenerational emotional cohesion (IEC) on depression in older internal migrants and the underlying mechanisms within the contemporary Chinese context.

METHODS

Obtained from a cross-sectional survey in Nanjing, China, the research involved 654 older internal migrants (66.97% female; mean age = 66.05 years; SD = 4.67). Variables were assessed using the Intergenerational Solidarity Inventory, 3-item R-UCLA Loneliness Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, and 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). For mediation exploration, a serial mediation model was utilized, and the Bootstrap method was employed to test the signifcance of these mediation effects.

RESULTS

IEC demonstrates a negative correlation with depression. Through IEC, three significant mediation pathways were identified that directly affect depression: (1) loneliness (β=-0.06; Ratio=17.14%), (2) perceived stress (β=-0.09; Ratio=25.71%), and (3) loneliness and perceived stress (β=-0.03; Ratio=8.57%).

CONCLUSIONS

IEC can impact the depression of older internal migrants by mitigating negative psychological emotions during the migration process. This finding provides valuable theoretical insights for the prevention of mental health problems among this demographic.

Social support and subjective well-being of noncustodial grandparent caregivers in urban China: The mediating roles of generative acts

While social support is generally beneficial, it remains unclear how it directly and indirectly affects subjective well-being among grandparents via generative acts. Multi-stage cluster random sampling was employed in a city in Eastern China, reaching 1013 noncustodial grandparent caregivers of kindergarten children (mean age = 58.3, range: 40-93, female = 71.9%, non-local = 508). Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results reveal that social support positively affected three indicators of subjective well-being among noncustodial grandparent caregivers. Also, social support worked through agentic generative acts to positively affect life satisfaction and positive affect, while not through domestic generative acts. The present study contributes to grandparent caregiving research in urban China by advancing an integrated framework that considers the mechanism of generative acts. Policy and practice implications are also discussed.

Self-Rated Health and Life Satisfaction among Elderly Migrants in China: A Moderated Mediation Model of Resilience and Upward Intergenerational Support

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to test whether resilience mediates the association between self-rated health and life satisfaction and the moderated effect of upward intergenerational support among elderly migrants in China.

METHOD

We used self-reported data collected from 654 elderly migrants in Nanjing. The regression analysis using bootstrapping methods was conducted to explore the mediating and moderating effects.

RESULTS

Resilience mediated the relationship between self-rated health and life satisfaction among elderly migrants in China. The moderated mediation analysis indicated that the upward intergenerational support moderated the path between self-rated health and resilience. Specifically, compared with those with a low level of emotional support, the self-rated health of elderly migrants with a high level of emotional support has a stronger effect on resilience. Moreover, the self-rated health of elderly migrants with a low level of financial support has a stronger effect on resilience than those with a higher level of financial support.

CONCLUSION

Resilience could partially mediate the effect of self-rated health on life satisfaction among elderly migrants in China, and upward intergenerational support moderated the indirect relationship between self-rated health and life satisfaction via resilience.

Influence of intergenerational relationships on depressive symptoms in ageing Chinese adults in Hong Kong: Mediating effects of sense of loneliness

Background

Mental health of older adults could be positively predicted by harmonious parent–adult children relationships, although the mechanism has not been sufficiently demonstrated. This study employed sense of loneliness as mediator to examine the influence of multiple domains of intergenerational relationships on depressive symptoms in ageing Chinese adults.

Methods

Data was extracted from a representative survey in Hong Kong among Chinese adults aged over 50 with at least one adult child (n = 801). Four key domains (structural–associational, consensual–normative, affectual closeness, and intergenerational conflict) were adopted to measure the intergenerational relationship quality. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the five-item Geriatric Depression Scale. The mediating role of sense of loneliness in the association between intergenerational relationships and depressive symptoms were tested by the PROCESS macro in SPSS.

Results

The influence of overall intergenerational relationship quality and its four subdomains on depressive symptoms were significantly mediated by sense of loneliness. Among the four domains, affectual closeness presented the strongest association with older people’s depressive symptoms. The effect of intergenerational conflict on depressive symptoms was completely mediated by sense of loneliness, and the effects of remaining three domains were partially mediated. The domain of consensual–normative solidarity received the lowest rating by Chinese older adults.

Conclusion

The psychological pathway that loneliness links intergenerational relationships and depressive symptoms was supported in this study. With respect to improving intergenerational relationships, enhancing affectual connection between older parents and adult children was essential to prevent mental problems. This study calls for more attention to the protective role of diverse social relationships in improving mental health through multiple pathways.

Association of Received Intergenerational Support with Subjective Well-Being among Elderly: The Mediating Role of Optimism and Sex Differences

Even though an extensive body of previous research has examined the association between received intergenerational support and the well-being outcomes of older adults in a wide variety of contexts, few studies have been conducted to explore the impacts of intergenerational support on elders’ subjective well-being, especially the intermediary mechanisms in this process. The purpose of this study is to fill this gap by exploring the mediating role of optimism in the association between received intergenerational support and subjective well-being among the elderly in China, as well as the sex differences that exist between males and females. The findings show that the intergenerational support received from adult children is positively related to subjective well-being and that this relationship is partly mediated by optimism. Meanwhile, no significant sex difference was found in the interrelations between intergenerational support, optimism, and subjective well-being.

The Relationship Between WeChat Use by Chinese Urban Older Adults Living Alone and Their Subjective Well-Being: The Mediation Role of Intergenerational Support and Social Activity

Purpose

WeChat is China’ biggest social media platform. In addition to instant messaging, it has a great many useful functions that can help Chinese citizens adapt to an increasingly digitized society. This study aimed to examine the effect of WeChat use on the subjective well-being (SWB) of Chinese older adults living alone, and how the effect could occur.

Participants and Methods

A total of 415 Chinese older adults living alone participated in the survey. Participants filled out questionnaires (scales) measuring their SWB, proficiency in WeChat use, social activity levels and self-esteem respectively. Mean scores of SWB were used to determine the difference in SWB between the users and non-users, and correlation test was performed to find out the association between proficiency in WeChat use and SWB among the users.

Results

The mean score of WeChat users was 34.68 (SD = 7.301), significantly higher than that of the non-users, which was 32.73 (SD = 7.168) (t = 2.741, p = 0.006). Among the users, the more proficient in WeChat use one was, the higher their SWB score (r = 0.458, p < 0.01). The results combined to demonstrate that WeChat use has a positive effect on the SWB of Chinese older adults living alone. The findings also showed that the increase in SWB was obtained through the mediation of intergenerational support and social activities.

Conclusion

This study suggests that WeChat use by Chinese older adults living alone could increase their intergenerational support and social activities; the increased intergenerational support and social activities then enhance the SWB of Chinese older adults living alone.

Whose migration matters? The role of migration in social networks and mental health among rural older adults in China

The dual demographic changes in massive rural-to-urban labour migration and population ageing have significantly impacted the lives of older adults, who have either been left behind in rural regions or migrated to urban areas. While many extant studies on migration and wellbeing of older adults have focused on either migrating or left-behind older adults, a very limited number of studies have directly compared these two groups. Utilising data from the China Longitudinal Ageing Social Survey, this study examines the impacts of different migration patterns (i.e. migrating older adults, left-behind older adults and non-migrating older adults) on the social networks and mental health of older adults in rural China. Structural equation modelling results showed that older adults who have been left behind reported weaker family ties and poorer mental health than the other older adults. Moreover, weakened family ties increased older adults’ risk of developing mental health problems. Older migrants reported the lowest level of depressive symptoms among the three groups of older adults. However, migration may be associated with poorer mental health among the older migrants due to the shrinking/weakening of family/friendship ties.

Intergenerational relationships and the trajectory of depressive symptoms among older Chinese adults in rural migrant families

OBJECTIVES

This study examined the trajectory patterns of depressive symptoms of older rural Chinese adults in migrant families and the role of intergenerational relationships in predicting trajectory class memberships.

METHOD

Data were derived from the 2001, 2003, 2006, and 2009 waves of a longitudinal survey titled The Well-being of Older People in Anhui Province. The sample featured 486 respondents who had at least one migrant adult children at all four waves. Growth mixture modeling was used to investigate the trajectory classifications of depressive symptoms from 2001 to 2009 and antecedents in differentiating among class memberships.

RESULTS

The findings suggested a two-class model to interpret depressive symptom trajectory patterns: persistently high symptoms and low but increasing symptoms. Older adults who had better intergenerational relationships at baseline were more likely to have low but increasing depressive symptoms after controlling for other covariates.

DISCUSSION

The findings suggest that intergenerational relationships have long-term impacts on depressive symptom trajectory classes. Policy and intervention implications are discussed.

The mediating effect of neighbor relationship between community social support and elderly's subjective well-being in China

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between community social support, neighbor relationship, and the subjective well-being of the elderly in China. Structural equation modeling was used to test the hypothesized model based on a sample of 2732 senior adults from 2010 Chinese General Social Survey. Results showed that community social support could indirectly affect the subjective well-being of the elderly through the complete mediating effect of neighbor relationship, although there was no significant correlation between community social support and the elderly's subjective well-being. Implications for theory, social work, and social policy were discussed.