Zhou Tao, Zhang Xiaoyi, Fan Shuming, Deng Zeming, Jiao Can
School of Psychology Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.
Faculty of Education, Department of Educational Psychology, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China.
Front Psychiatry. 2022 Apr 27;13:848911. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.848911. eCollection 2022.
This study aimed to explore the impact of early neighborhood cohesion, and its mechanism, on cognitive function in later life.
In total, 10,727 Chinese elderly, aged 60-90, forming two datasets (2014 and 2018) from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) were used as a sample. Childhood neighborhood cohesion was measured by the extent of how much neighbors were willing to help and how close-knit neighbors were. Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD-10) were used to assess the cognitive functions and depression of the elderly. We used a structural equation model to examine the relationship between early neighborhood cohesion and late-life cognitive function and conducted bootstrapping analyses to assess the mechanism.
Cognitive function was positively predicted by childhood neighborhood cohesion (β = 0.06, < 0.001), and cognitive function of the elderly were also positively predicted through the mediating effects of childhood friendships, which included depression and social activity participation as two chain paths.
The findings suggest that childhood neighborhood cohesion positively predicts cognitive function among elderly people through the mediating roles of childhood friendship, depression, and social activity engagement. Childhood neighborhood cohesion is correlated with better childhood friendships, then to fewer depression symptoms and greater elderly social activity participation, and finally to better cognitive functions in the elderly.
本研究旨在探讨早期邻里凝聚力及其机制对晚年认知功能的影响。
总共10727名年龄在60至90岁之间的中国老年人作为样本，他们来自中国健康与养老追踪调查（CHARLS）的两个数据集（2014年和2018年）。童年邻里凝聚力通过邻居愿意互相帮助的程度以及邻里关系的紧密程度来衡量。简易精神状态检查表（MMSE）和流行病学研究中心抑郁量表（CESD - 10）用于评估老年人的认知功能和抑郁情况。我们使用结构方程模型来检验早期邻里凝聚力与晚年认知功能之间的关系，并进行了自抽样分析以评估其机制。
童年邻里凝聚力对认知功能有正向预测作用（β = 0.06，< 0.001），老年人的认知功能还通过童年友谊的中介作用得到正向预测，其中童年友谊包括抑郁和社会活动参与这两条链式路径。
研究结果表明，童年邻里凝聚力通过童年友谊、抑郁和社会活动参与的中介作用，对老年人的认知功能有正向预测作用。童年邻里凝聚力与更好的童年友谊相关，进而导致更少的抑郁症状和更多的老年人社会活动参与，最终带来更好的老年人认知功能。
