ArticleBMC public health2025
Attitude towards aging and anxiety in the relationship between social alienation and depression in Chinese rural empty-nest older adults: a chained mediation modeling analysis.
Article in BMC public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
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6 citing papers in PubMed.
- Association between spiritual care competence and professional attitude among community nurses in China: insights from a cross-sectional study.BMC nursing · 2026Article
- Association Between Physical Activity and Anxiety in A Rural Chinese Middle-Aged and Older Cohort.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2026Article
- Social alienation and cognitive function among older adults: the mediating roles of ruminative thinking and self-neglect.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Health Qigong engagement scale and wellbeing in Chinese older adults.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- The impact of alumni football on adult mental wellbeing: a serial mediation analysis of athletic identity and social connectedness.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Digitization and Active Aging: How Digital Finance Shapes the Mental Health of Empty-Nest Older Individuals.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
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Abstract
backgroundDepression among rural empty-nest older adults has emerged as a significant global and Chinese concern in recent years. Studies have identified associations between depression in rural empty-nest older adults and factors such as social alienation, attitudes towards aging, and mental health. However, the intricate mechanisms underlying these relationships remain incompletely understood. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate the intricate connections between social alienation and depression among Chinese rural empty-nest older adults, aiming to shed light on the underlying mechanisms contributing to depression in this demographic.
methodsThe study data were gathered from a sample of rural empty-nest older adults (N = 1025) residing in the cities of Chaoyang, Liaoning Province, China. Depression served as the primary outcome variable, with social alienation as the predictor variable. Attitude towards aging and anxiety symptoms were examined as potential mediators in the relationship between social alienation and depression. Mediation and chained mediation modeling analyses were conducted to analyze the data and explore the proposed relationships.
results(1) Social alienation positively predicted attitude towards aging (β = 0.109, P < 0.001), anxiety symptoms (β = 0.076, P < 0.001), and depression (β = 0.021, P < 0.001). Attitude towards aging positively predicted anxiety symptoms (β = 0.390, P < 0.001) and depression (β = 0.006, P < 0.001). Anxiety symptoms also positively predicted depression (β = 1.207, P < 0.001). (2) Social alienation mainly affects depression through three indirect effects: (1) Social alienation → attitude towards aging → depression; (2) Social alienation → anxiety symptoms → depression; (3) Social alienation → attitude towards aging → anxiety symptoms → depression.
conclusionOur findings suggest that social alienation impacts depression among Chinese rural empty-nest older adults through the pathways of attitude towards aging and anxiety symptoms. Consequently, efforts aimed at preventing depression rooted in social alienation among this demographic should address both attitudes towards aging and mental health concerns.
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