Productive engagement of older adults in China: A multilevel analysis

Development and validation of a questionnaire to evaluate the productive engagement of Chinese older adults in the community

BACKGROUND

The evaluation of productive engagement of old adults has become a challenging task because cultural, ethical, religious, and other personal values may influence perceptions of the meaning and consequences of productive engagement. Assessing the productive engagement of the older adults is crucial to promote active and productive aging. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a questionnaire concerning the productive engagement of Chinese older adults in the community.

METHODS

A draft scale was created via a literature review and interviews with 17 older adults in the community, following the cross-cultural framework for productive engagement in later life. Content validity was assessed by seven experts. Subsequently, a preliminary questionnaire containing 33 items was developed and its psychometric properties were evaluated.

RESULTS

The final version of the questionnaire was composed of 27 items distributed across five dimensions. The overall standardized Cronbach's α for the productive engagement questionnaire was 0.904, with individual dimension values ranging from 0.759 to 0.869. Nearly all dimensions displayed satisfactory factor loadings. The correlation coefficient between each item's score and its respective dimension ranged from 0.473 to 0.723.

CONCLUSIONS

The developed questionnaire exhibited good validity and reliability, showing promise for effectively evaluating the productive engagement level of Chinese older adults within the community.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Not applicable.

Measuring Active Ageing: A Scoping Review and the Applicability to the Situation in China

Background and Purpose

Ageing has become one of the major global public issues and active ageing has become a global goal. Accurate and reproducible assessment tools are a prerequisite for robust and reliable measurement of active ageing and policy formulation. However, a broad scoping review describing the characteristics and heterogeneity of assessment tools for active ageing is lacking. This study aims to comprehensively portray current active ageing assessment tools and their features.

Methods

We conducted a scoping review, focusing on the Active Ageing Assessment Tool, and searched seven databases: CNKI, WanFang, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science Core Collection, Medline, and Proquest. The research process adhered to the methodological framework of Arkey and O'Malley and the PRISMA-ScR specification. More so, we registered the research program with the Open Science Framework.

Results

Ultimately, we included twenty-two pieces of literature. The development of the active ageing assessment tool predominantly occurred between 2012 and 2023, with a focus on foreign countries (16 studies). All included literature presented multidimensional Active ageing assessment tools. Eighteen studies examined active ageing assessment tools at the macro level, while four studies focused on the individual level. Also, fourteen out of the twenty-two studies were based on the World Health Organization's Theoretical Framework for Active Ageing. The literature contained only two active ageing assessment tools designed for specific subgroups of older people.

Conclusion

Future development of active ageing assessment tools should integrate more comprehensive concepts and social theories of active ageing. Additionally, there is a need to explore active ageing measurement tools tailored for diverse subgroups of the older adults at various levels.

Unraveling the Impact of Widowhood Duration on Depression: Does Time Heal All Wounds?

China's aging population has witnessed a surge in widowed older adults, raising concerns about their mental health. Losing a spouse is a profoundly distressing experience with enduring effects on well-being. Despite the proverbial belief in time's healing power, existing studies often neglect the potential decline in depressive symptoms during widowhood. Drawing data from the 2015 and 2018 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, this study delved into the impact of widowhood duration on depression among 8370 older adults and uncovered significantly higher depression scores among widowed individuals, particularly in the initial three years. This study revealed that widowhood contributes to heightened depression levels even after accounting for sociodemographic factors. Although the depressive impact lessens over time, it persists beyond three years, underscoring the need for heightened awareness and support for this vulnerable population.

The active aging level of the rural older adults with disability in China: a cross-sectional study

Background

Active aging has been listed as an important indicator to measure the quality of life of the older adults and the construction of the senior care system. There is an imbalance between the supply and demand of senior care services for the disabled older adults in rural areas, and the quality of life needs to be improved.

Objectives

We aimed to analyze the current situation of active aging and the influencing factors of the rural disabled older adults, in order to provide a reference basis for improving the quality of life of the rural disabled older adults.

Methods

We conducted a multicenter and cross-sectional study, using the Barthel Index Scale and Chinese version of the Active Aging Scale, to facilitate the selection of 304 rural older adults with disability in 26 villages under Henan Province for a questionnaire survey.

Results

The mean score for the level of active aging of rural older adults with disability was 1.87 (SD 0.36), with the highest score for the dimension of being self-reliant (Mean2.29, SD 0.61) and lower scores for the dimension of active contribution to society (Mean 1.37, SD 0.55) and building up financial security (Mean 1.37, SD 0.57). The results of the multiple regression analysis showed higher levels of active aging among the disabled older adults with retirement pay, mild disability, and longer time per activity/rehabilitation exercise (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Active aging of the rural disabled older adults is at a low level, with insufficient economic security and social participation. The national government should help improve the quality of primary health care in rural areas, build a friendly environment for senior communities, and improve policies to protect the welfare of the older adults, so as to collaboratively empower the disabled older adults in rural areas at three levels: health, participation, and protection.

Effects of social participation patterns and living arrangement on mental health of Chinese older adults: A latent class analysis

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to discover patterns of social participation among Chinese older individuals, investigate the links between these patterns and their living arrangements and mental health, and connect these patterns to their background characteristics.

Methods

Data were drawn from the 2014 and 2018 waves of Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) from 2537 Chinese elders aged 60 years and over at the baseline. Latent class analysis was used to determine the patterns of social participation. Multinomial logistic regression was used to explore the relationship between patterns of social participation and the sociodemographic and health characteristics of older adults. Binary logistic regression was used to explore the differences and associations between these categories and living arrangement on mental health status, represented by positive and negative emotions.

Results

Three patterns of social participation were identified: Low activity (17.5%, n = 443); Moderate activity (36.2%, n = 1,176); and High activity (46.3%, n = 918). At baseline, these patterns were significantly associated with mental health status. Positive and negative emotions were much better in the High activity group than in the other two groups (OR = 1.36, 95% CI = 1.05–1.76 and OR = 1.50, 95% CI = 1.16–1.93). Living arrangement only significantly affected negative emotions (OR=1.25, 95% CI = 1.02–1.53). Age, gender, education, marital status, self-rated health, and activities of daily living limitations all affected social participation patterns.

Conclusions

The patterns of social participation and living arrangement of Chinese older adults are significantly associated with mental health. Population-tailored interventions may help liberate older adults from domestic labor and improve social participation. Moreover, family support can decrease negative emotions' damage in old age thus promoting health.