Socio-economic status, self-rated health and mental health: the mediation effect of social participation on early-late midlife and older adults

Abstract

Background: Socioeconomic status (SES) is a major determinant of diverse health outcomes, among these are selfrated-health and mental health. Yet the mechanisms underlying the SES-health relation are not fully explored. Socioeconomic inequalities in health and mental health may form along several pathways. One is social participation which is linked to better self-rated-health and mental health. We examined (1) whether various social participation practices, including the usage of information and communication technology, relate to a unidimensional or multidimensional phenomenon (2) the relationship among SES, social participation, self-rated-health and mental health; (3) whether social participation and mental health mediates the association between SES and self-rated-health; (4) whether social participation and self-rated-health mediates the links between SES and mental health. Method: Cross-sectional data for individuals aged 35 and older were taken from the Israeli Social Survey for 2016 (N = 4848). Social participation practices included connection with family and friends, self-perceived-support, self-perceived trust, volunteering, civic and political involvement, and information and communication technology usage. An exploratory factor analysis was conducted for all social participation practices. We then constructed structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to explore paths of relations among SES, social participation, self-rated-health and mental health. Results: We found disparities in self-rated health and mental health across SES. Social participation practice, 'frequency of meeting with friends', mediated the links between SES-self-rated health and SES-mental health. Formal social participation practices along with internet usage mediated the SES-self-rated health link. Informal social participation practices and self-perceived trust mediated the SES-mental health link. Mental health mediated the SESself-rated health link and self-rated health mediated the SES-mental health link. Conclusion: The links between SES and the two health constructs were enhanced by common and distinct social participation practices. Enhancement of social participation practices among low SES individuals is recommended. Social participation should be a prominent aspect of preventive medicine practice and health promotion interventions. Policy makers are called to support such programs as an important way to promote public health.

Unemployment and Psychological Distress among Young People during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Psychological Resources and Risk Factors

“…These beliefs might moderate the stress associated with unemployment. In line with this assumption, trust has been previously studied as a moderator in the unemployment-well-being link [ 51 ], as a mediator in the SES–PD link [ 52 ], and as a moderator in the poverty-loneliness link [ 53 ]. Given the harsh restrictions on social gatherings and activities (the structural component of social capital) and the lockdown imposed during the month of April, we thought that the cognitive component would be more appropriate than the structural one for measuring social capital.…”

Influence of Subjective/Objective Status and Possible Pathways of Young Migrants’ Life Satisfaction and Psychological Distress in China

“…Social participation can be defined as participation and involvement in social or community activities that provide interactions with others in the community and a platform for fulfilling an individual's needs for the social integration necessary for wellbeing (Levasseur et al, 2010;Dai et al, 2013;Achdut and Sarid, 2020). Social participation is beneficial for mental health (Sun and Lyu, 2020).…”

“…One study found that social participation could explain approximately 11% of psychological health disparity among rural-urban migrants (Sun and Lyu, 2020). Previous studies revealed that social participation mediates the relationship between individual resources and mental health (Dai et al, 2013;Achdut and Sarid, 2020;Sun and Lyu, 2020). However, much evidence for the level of social participation and its association with mental health are in older adults (Kim, 2019;Wang et al, 2020).…”

Changes in health inequalities for patients with diabetes among middle-aged and elderly in China from 2011 to 2015

“…A number of recent studies have demonstrated that socioeconomic status (SES) is the most decisive factor affecting health [ 4 – 6 ]. A relation exists between prevalence of diabetes and relatively disadvantaged socioeconomic position in developing and developed countries [ 7 ].…”