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LU, Nan, Ph.D. candidate LOU, Vivian, W.Q., Ph.D. Ci, Qinying, Ph.D.

The impacts of social capital on the self-rated health of rural older adults living in Central China. LU, Nan, Ph.D. candidate LOU, Vivian, W.Q., Ph.D. Ci, Qinying, Ph.D. Outline of the Study. Demographic changes of Chinese population Conceptualizing social capital in rural China

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LU, Nan, Ph.D. candidate LOU, Vivian, W.Q., Ph.D. Ci, Qinying, Ph.D.

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  1. The impacts of social capital on the self-rated health of rural older adults living in Central China LU, Nan, Ph.D. candidate LOU, Vivian, W.Q., Ph.D. Ci, Qinying, Ph.D.

  2. Outline of the Study • Demographic changes of Chinese population • Conceptualizing social capital in rural China • The aim of the study • Methodology • Results and discussions

  3. Demographic Changes of Chinese Population • Rapid aging population (437 million in 2050) • Great transitions in family structure (family sizes, living arrangements for rural older adults, and geographic distances among generations )

  4. Does Community Social Capital Matter in rural China? • The association between community social capital and self-rated health has been well established in the Western context (Kawachi, Kennedy, & Glass, 1999; Sapag et al., 2008; Schultz, O'Brien, & Tadesse, 2008). • The association between some key indicators of community social capital (e.g. structural social capital) and self-rated health were not found among rural Chinese older adults (Norstrand & Xu, 2011; Yip et al., 2007).

  5. Conceptualizing Social Capital in Rural China • Social capital is a multi-dimensional latent construct and unable to be directly observed. • Chinese older adults tend to interpret the functions of family networks and community networks in different ways. • Social capital embedded from one’s family relationships is largely ignored in the existing literature.

  6. The Aim of the Study • This study examines the latent constructs of community social capital and family social capital in rural Chinese contexts, as well as the relationship between family social capital, community social capital and the self-rated health of rural Chinese older adults.

  7. Hypotheses • Hypothesis 1: Community social capital has a positive effect on the self-rated health of rural Chinese older adults. • Hypothesis 2: Family social capital has a positive impact on the family social capital of rural Chinese older adults. • Hypothesis 3: Family social capital fully mediates the relationship between community social capital and the self-rated health of rural Chinese older adults.

  8. Sampling • Cluster sampling was used to randomly select 257 rural respondents living in the rural Yichang region, central China. • The mean age of the respondents was 70.2 years. • The number of females was slightly higher than the number of males (54.8 per cent vs. 45.2 per cent). • 64.4 per cent of the respondents were married. Nearly half of the respondents were illiterate (49.5 per cent). • A large proportion of the respondents reported that their annual household income was below RMB1500 (46.2 per cent). • The majority of the respondents rated their health as fair/poor/very poor (75 per cent).

  9. Measurement • Dependent variable • Self-rated health (0 = very poor/poor/fair; 1= good/excellent) • Independent variables • Community social capital (safety in the community; volunteer activity; social participation) • Family social capital (intergenerational support from adult children; intergenerational relationship with adult children; filial piety from adult children) • Covariates • Age, gender, marital status, education and annual household income

  10. Data Analysis • Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) Two-step method (Measurement model, structural model) • A set of fit indexes were adopted to assess the model fit: the chi-square test statistic, comparative fit index (CFI), Tucker-Lewis index (TLI), root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) and the weighted root mean square residual (WRMR) (Kline, 2011; C. Y. Yu, 2002).

  11. Results of measurement model • χ2 (5) = 2.072, p = .8391; RMSEA = 0.000 (0.000 - 0.056); CFI = 1.000, TLI = 1.027; SRMR = 0.015 • No correlation residuals were above 0.1 • The standardised factor loading scores ranged from 0.392 to 0.838.

  12. Results of the first structural model • A first structural model was used to test on the direct effect of community social capital on self-rated health. • χ2 (11) = 9.247, p = 0.5991; RMSEA = 0.000 (0.000-0.064); CFI = 1.000, TLI = 1.102; WRMR = 0.479. Factoring loadings range from 0.375 to 0.464. In addition, no correlation residuals were above 0.1. • The results show that community social capital is significantly associated with self-rated health [β (SD) = 0.340 (0.138), p<.05].

  13. Results of the second structural model • A second structural model was conducted to test the mediation role of family social capital on the association between community social capital and self-rated health. • χ2 (27) = 21.684, p = .7533; RMSEA = 0.000 (0.000 - 0.040); CFI = 1.000, TLI = 1.043; WRMR = 0.451. No correlation residuals were above 0.1 in the structural model. • 49.4 per cent of the variance in the self-rated health of rural older adults was explained by the structural model.

  14. Results of the second model • Variations in community social capital significantly accounted for variations in family social capital: β (SD) = 0.757 (0.264), p < .01. • Community social capital was no longer a significant predictor of self-rated health when family social capital was controlled for: β (SD) = -0.055 (0.251), p = 0.827. • Family social capital fully mediated the relationship between community social capital and self-rated health: β (SD) = 0.397 (0.201), p < .05.

  15. Discussions • The latent constructs of family social capital and community social capital were tested and confirmed. While family resources remain significant support sources for rural older adults, community social capital also plays an compensatory role in supporting family social capital. It also indirectly influence rural Chinese older adults’ self-rated health.

  16. The Mediation Role of Family Social Capital • The effects of community social capital on self-rated health are fully mediated by family social capital. • Two plausible explanations:1) This might partially be because rural older adults’ social life in the community provides additional sources to sustain or promote their family social relationships and family support. 2) An alternative explanation is that rural older adults’ expectations of filial piety from their adult children could become more realistic and practical through social comparisons with their rural counterparts (Adelman, Parks, & Albrecht, 1987; Frieswijk, Buunk, Steverink, & Slaets, 2004; Heidrich & Ryff, 1993).

  17. Limitations • Given the cross-sectional nature of the current study, the direction of the causality between social capital and self-rated health cannot be determined. • This study used secondary data and it could only assess social capital based on it.

  18. Reference • Adelman, M. B., Parks, M. R., & Albrecht, T. L. (1987). Beyond close relationships: support in weak ties. In T. L. Albrecht & M. B. Adelman (Eds.), Communicating social support (pp. 126-147). Newbury Park, CA: Sage. • Frieswijk, N., Buunk, B. P., Steverink, N., & Slaets, J. P. J. (2004). The interpretation of social comparison and its relation to life satisfaction among elderly people: does frailty make a difference? The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 59(5), 250-257. doi: 10.1093/geronb/59.5.P250 • Heidrich, S. M., & Ryff, C. D. (1993). The role of social comparisons processes in the psychological adaptation of elderly adults. Journal of Gerontology, 48(3), 127-136. doi: 10.1093/geronj/48.3.P127 • Kawachi, I., Kennedy, B. P., & Glass, R. (1999). Social capital and self-rated health: a contextual analysis. American Journal of Public Health, 89(8), 1187-1193. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.89.8.1187 • Kline, R. B. (2011). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (3rd ed.). New York: The Guilford Press. • Norstrand, J. A., & Xu, Q. (2011). Social capital and health outcomes among older adults in China: the urban–rural dimension. The Gerontologist. doi: 10.1093/geront/gnr072 • Sapag, J., Aracena, M., Villarroel, L., Poblete, F., Berrocal, C., Hoyos, R., . . . Kawachi, I. (2008). Social capital and self-rated health in urban low income neighbourhoods in Chile. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 62(9), 790-792. doi: 10.1136/jech.2006.052993 • Schultz, J., O'Brien, A. M., & Tadesse, B. (2008). Social capital and self-rated health: results from the US 2006 social capital survey of one community. Social Science & Medicine, 67(4), 606-617. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.05.002 • Yip, W., Subramanian, S. V., Mitchell, A. D., Lee, D. T. S., Wang, J., & Kawachi, I. (2007). Does social capital enhance health and well-being? Evidence from rural China. Social Science & Medicine, 64(1), 35-49. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2006.08.027 • Yu, C. Y. (2002). Evaluating cutoff criteria of model fit indices for latent variable models with binary and continuous outcomes. Ph.D. Doctoral Dissertation, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles.

  19. Thank you!!!

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