Social participation is a key pathway to promoting active and healthy aging. While existing studies have examined the relationship between social participation and cognitive health, relatively little is known about how different patterns of participation are associated with cognitive outcomes.
Methods
Drawing on the perspective of personal–family balance, this study utilizes data from the 2018 and 2020 waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Based on older adults’ engagement in personal life domains (personal recreation, learning & socializing, economic activities, and volunteer work) and family life domains (caring for parents and grandchildren), we conducted latent class analysis to categorize social participation patterns into four types: personal-centered, family-centered, balanced, and low-participation. We then examine the associations of these patterns with cognitive decline among older adults.
Results
(1) Compared with the low-participation type, the personal-centered, family-centered, and balanced types are all significantly associated with a reduced risk of cognitive decline; (2) None of the three participation patterns shows a significant association with cognitive decline among older people in urban areas, whereas the personal-centered and balanced patterns are significantly associated with lower risk of cognitive decline among older people in rural areas; (3) The personal-centered pattern significantly reduces the risk of cognitive decline among the middle and oldest groups, with a stronger protective association observed in the latter. In contrast, the balanced pattern of social participation significantly reduces the risk of cognitive decline among the youngest group, but shows a positive association with cognitive decline among the oldest group.
Discussion
These findings highlight that optimizing the structure of social participation, promoting engagement among rural older adults, and adopting age-responsive approaches across different stages of later life are essential strategies for improving cognitive health.
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