Individual-level community-based social capital and depressive symptoms among older adults in urban China: the moderating effects of socioeconomic status

Abstract

Objectives This study aimed to examine the moderating role of socioeconomic status in the association between community-based social capital—based on individual-level cognitive and structural social capital—and depressive symptoms among older adults in urban China. Methods Data were collected in 2020 through a community survey of 800 respondents aged 60 years and older living in Shijiazhuang and Tianjin. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Multiple-group analyses were conducted to analyze the data. Results Measurement models of cognitive social capital and structural social capital were established. Measurement invariance was established across different socioeconomic groups. Additionally, socioeconomic status significantly moderated the association between social capital and depressive symptoms. The association between cognitive social capital and depressive symptoms was statistically significant among respondents with relatively low incomes and high levels of education, whereas the association between structural social capital and depressive symptoms was significant only among those with relatively high incomes. Conclusion Future social capital policies and interventions should adopt different strategies to provide services to older adults from different socioeconomic backgrounds. Furthermore, educational programs should promote the effects of cognitive social capital on depressive symptoms later in life.