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Comment
. 2024 Jan 5:11:1261132.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1261132. eCollection 2023.

Aging in place in rural Northeast China: a mixed methods examination of the influence of social capital on mental well-being in middle and late adulthood

Yunfei Gao #  1 , Jing Wu #  2
Affiliations
Comment

Aging in place in rural Northeast China: a mixed methods examination of the influence of social capital on mental well-being in middle and late adulthood

Yunfei Gao et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

The rural development strategy in contemporary China has evolved from focusing solely on "absolute poverty alleviation" to addressing multiple dimensions, including "targeting relative poverty and revitalizing the entire rural area." Using a mixed-methods approach, our study aimed to examine whether and how social capital, particularly social support and social trust, influences the mental well-being of middle-aged and older people aging in place in a remote rural Northeast area of China, exploring three constructs: life purpose, self-actualization, and capability. Our quantitative findings revealed that higher levels of social support and social trust were positively related to higher levels of life purpose. Increased social support was positively related to increased life purpose through increased social trust. However, the associations between social support, social trust, and the constructs of self-actualization and capability were not substantiated after controlling for covariates. Our interview data illuminated how middle-aged and older people perceived the interplay between social support, social trust, and mental well-being.

Keywords: aging in place; mental well-being; middle-aged and older people; mixed methods; poverty; rural China; social support; social trust.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Conceptual model.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The mediating effect of social trust on the relationship between social support and mental well-being (life purpose).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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