School of Nursing, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China.
Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China.
Psychogeriatrics. 2022 Sep;22(5):743-756. doi: 10.1111/psyg.12879. Epub 2022 Jul 20.
With the gradual acceleration of population ageing, social isolation in older people has increasingly become a hot topic of social concern. The reduction of valid social participation will cause older people to weaken their sense of belonging to the community and social acquisition, negatively impacting on older people's quality of life. This study is aimed to explore the main related factors affecting the social isolation of older people, so as to provide a solid scientific basis for improving the health behaviour of older people in China.
A cross-sectional study was conducted among 2267 community residents over 60 years old from four cites in Jiangsu Province, China. Perceived social support scale, Geriatric Depression Scale, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, Comprehensive Ability of Older People Assessment Scale and other influencing factors scales were used to investigate the current situation. Social isolation was measured with the Lubben Social Network Scale. Demographic data were evaluated using descriptive statistical analyses and relationships among study variables were determined to use a path analysis. All data were analyzed using SPSS version 22 and AMOS version 26 using T-test, analysis of variance, logistic regression analyses, and path analysis method. The test level was set at alpha = 0.05, and the difference was statistically significant at P-value <0.05.
The results of the model test analysis indicated that the hypothesised paths were supported by data from our samples and demonstrated significance on the path coefficients (P < 0.05). Related factors in the three dimensions of social risk, economic risk and cultural risk have an impact on the social isolation of older people in the community through direct and indirect pathways, and also indirectly through the partially mediated role of depression. Overall, our hypothesised model was retained, indicating empirical support and adequate model fit indices for the theoretical model.
The findings demonstrated the predictive role of related factors of social isolation in older people. In the future, we should focus on developing interventions by uniting many forces such as society, family and older people themselves to reduce social isolation among this vulnerable population and improve the quality of life of older people and promote healthy ageing.
随着人口老龄化的逐步加速，老年人的社会隔离问题日益成为社会关注的热点。有效社会参与的减少会导致老年人削弱对社区和社会归属感的认知，对老年人的生活质量产生负面影响。本研究旨在探讨影响老年人社会隔离的主要相关因素，为提高中国老年人的健康行为提供坚实的科学依据。
采用横断面研究方法，对江苏省四个城市的 2267 名 60 岁以上社区居民进行调查。使用感知社会支持量表、老年抑郁量表、Connor-Davidson 韧性量表、老年人综合能力评估量表等影响因素量表进行现状调查。采用 Lubben 社会网络量表测量社会隔离情况。采用描述性统计分析评估人口统计学数据，采用路径分析确定研究变量之间的关系。所有数据均采用 SPSS 版本 22 和 AMOS 版本 26 进行分析，采用 T 检验、方差分析、Logistic 回归分析和路径分析方法。检验水平设为α=0.05，P 值<0.05 表示差异具有统计学意义。
模型测试分析结果表明，研究样本数据支持假设路径，且路径系数具有统计学意义（P<0.05）。社会风险、经济风险和文化风险三个维度的相关因素通过直接和间接途径，以及通过抑郁的部分中介作用，对社区老年人的社会隔离产生影响。总体而言，我们提出的假设模型得到保留，表明理论模型具有实证支持和充足的模型拟合指数。
研究结果表明社会隔离相关因素对老年人具有预测作用。未来应整合社会、家庭和老年人自身等多方力量，开展干预措施，减少这一弱势群体的社会隔离，提高老年人的生活质量，促进健康老龄化。
