ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Aging and Public Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1530639
This article is part of the Research TopicHealthy ageing, social psychiatry of older adults and family caregiversView all 17 articles
The Association Between Intergenerational Support and Depressive Symptoms in Older Adults: A Chain Mediation Analysis of Life Satisfaction and Well-being Author(s) name(s)
Provisionally accepted
- Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang, China
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Background: With the acceleration of population ageing, increasing attention has been directed toward mental health issues in later life. Among these, depressive symptoms represent one of the most prevalent psychological concerns and have been consistently associated with lower quality of life and impaired social functioning in older adults. As a primary source of social support for older adults, intergenerational support plays a crucial role in shaping their psychological well-being. This study aims to examine the potential mediating mechanisms linking intergenerational support to depressive symptoms among older adults, within the context of China's traditional culture of filial piety. The findings are intended to provide a theoretical basis for optimizing intergenerational support strategies and promoting mental health in later life.Methods: This study employed data from the 2020 wave of the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), focusing on variables related to intergenerational support from children, life satisfaction, well-being, and depressive symptoms. Analysis methods included analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson correlation analysis, and bootstrap procedures to examine the chain mediation effects involving intergenerational support, life satisfaction, well-being, and depressive symptoms.Results: Emotional support (β=-0.431, P≤0.001), life satisfaction (βemotional support =-0.727, P≤0.001; βeconomic support =-0.757, P≤0.001; βcare support =-0.756, P≤0.001), and well-being (βemotional support=-0.468, P≤0.001; βeconomic support=-0.518, P≤0.001; β care support=-0.504, P ≤ 0.001) were significantly associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms. Economic support (β=0.956, P ≤0.001) and care support (β =0.433, P ≤ 0.001) were positively associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms. Life satisfaction and well-being were found to exert a chain mediating effect in the association between intergenerational support and depressive symptoms
Keywords: total effect = -0.825, 95% CI [-0.990, -0.662], direct effect = -0.431, 95% CI [-0.5896, -0.2713], indirect effect = -0.0710, 95% CI [-0.0935, -0.0506], economic support: total effect = 0.7138, 95% CI [0.4609, 0.9667], direct effect = 0.9560, 95% CI [0.7185, 1.1936], indirect effect = -0.0373, 95% CI [-0.0664, -0.0106], care support: total effect = 0.2719, 95% CI [0.0061, 0.5377], direct effect = 0.4334, 95% CI [0.1836, 0.6832]
Received: 27 Nov 2024; Accepted: 26 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Feng, Geng, Wang, An, Gao, Cai, Jing, Gao and Ma. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Weiqin Cai, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang, China
Anning Ma, Shandong Second Medical University, Weifang, China
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