Widowhood and cognitive function among older adults in China: short-, medium-, and long-term relationships and...

This study aimed to examine the association between widowhood duration and cognitive function among Chinese older adults and to analyze the mediating effects of stress and social participation, with gender differences also explored.

This study utilized data from four waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Survey spanning the years 2011 to 2018. Three datasets were generated, comprising 33226, 18073, and 7335 respondents aged 50 and above for short-term, medium-term, and long-term widowhood duration analyses, respectively. The structural equation models were employed to conduct analyses.

Spousal loss was significantly associated with cognitive decline among Chinese older adults in the short and medium term. Across different widowhood durations, stress behavior and social participation demonstrated a significant negative indirect effect on the relationships between spousal loss and cognition in the short and medium terms. Regarding the gender differences, the total effects were statistically significant for women in the short- and medium-term widowhood groups and for men in the short-term widowhood group, and indirect effects for stress behavior and social participation did.

These findings underscore the importance of prompt and long-term psychosocial interventions to alleviate stress behaviors among the widowed. Community-level initiatives should be taken to offer social leisure activities to support the widowed in fostering new social connections. In addition, female widows need longer attention from stress-relieving behaviors and increased social participation.