Effects of Social Interaction on Self-Rated Health of Older Adults: The Mediating Effect of Psychological Capital

  Objective   To analyze the effect of social interaction on the self-rated health of older adults and the mediating effect played by psychological capital in the process.

  Methods  The ordered probit regression model was used to analyze the impact of factors concerning social interaction on the self-rated health of the older adults, and the Bootstrap method was used to analyze the mediating effect of psychological capital.

  Results  After controlling for variables of individual characteristics, active social interaction (β=0.094, P<0.01), social contact with relatives (β=0.075, P<0.1), and social contact with friends (β=0.049, P<0.01) have significant positive effects on the self-rated health of older adults, while social contact with neighbors (β=−0.019, P>0.1) did no display significant effect. Psychological capital plays a partial mediating effect on the influence of active social interaction, social contact with relatives, and social contact with friends on the self-rated health of older adults, with the mediating effect of psychological impact accounting for 15.84%, 19.40% and 11.23%, respectively, of the influence.

  Conclusion  Social interaction promotes the self-rated health of older adults, and psychological capital plays a partial mediating effect in the process. Encouraging older adults to participate in social interaction and giving positive informational feedbacks can help increase the psychological capital of the elderly, thereby improving their health.