Social engagement among U.S. Chinese older adults--findings from the PINE Study.
BACKGROUND
Social engagement is a key indicator of older adults' later life quality and health status, but few studies have comprehensively examined social engagement patterns of U.S. Chinese older adults. This study assesses social engagement patterns among U.S. Chinese older adults.


METHODS
Data were collected by the Population Study of Chinese Elderly project, a cross-sectional population-based study of 3,159 U.S. Chinese older adults aged 60 and older in the greater Chicago area. Social engagement patterns were examined with a list of 16 social engagement activity related questions. Analysis of variance and Pearson or Spearman correlation coefficients were used to examine correlations between sociodemographic and health characteristics and social engagement.


RESULTS
Age was negatively associated with social engagement actives for Chinese older adults. Although education had a significant positive correlation on older adults' participation in social engagement activities, income did not show any significant correlation. Perceived health status and quality of life were also positively correlated with social engagement. Chinese older adults were more likely to visit community centers than any other social or cultural venues.


CONCLUSIONS
This study highlights the important role community centers play in the lives of Chinese older adults. Further, longitudinal studies are also necessary to understand the predictors and outcomes of social engagement levels among Chinese older adults.
Rush Institute for Healthy Aging, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois. xinqi_dong@rush.edu.
XinQi
X
Dong
Department of Obstetrics/Gynecology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois.
Yu
Y
Li
Department of Obstetrics/Gynecology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois.
Melissa A
MA
Simon
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001213:Asian; D002641:Chicago; D002681:China / Q000208:ethnology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D058992:Social Participation
Chinese American.; Population-based; Social participation