This article is a comparative study of the relationship between cognitive social capital and self-rated health among Chinese elderly in rural areas. By quota sampling, a sample of 398 elderly adults was interviewed for data collection. Multi-group analysis was employed to analyze the data. No significant relationship between cognitive social capital and self-rated health existed in the young-old group, whereas only trust exhibited a significant correlation with self-rated health in the old-old group. Only social participation was significantly correlated with self-rated health in the oldest-old group. Different aspects of social capital weigh distinctively for distinctive age cohorts.
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