Religious Participation, Gender Differences, and Cognitive Impairment among the Oldest-Old in China

This study examines if religious participation in China is associated with cognitive functioning among the oldest-old and whether positive psychological feelings and leisure activity engagement explain the association, and gender moderates the association. Logistic regressions were used to analyze the Chinese Healthy Longevity Survey. A significant negative association between religious participation and cognitive impairment was found among the oldest-old and much of the association was mediated by positive psychological feelings and leisure activities. Women reported higher proportion of religious participation, but the cognitive benefits of religious participation were stronger for men. Findings indicate that (a) religious participation is significantly correlated with cognitive functioning in part because the religious oldest-old are more likely to be optimistic and happy and engage in more cognitively stimulating activities; (b) there might be gender differences in religious participation such that the oldest-old men may engage in religious activities that are particularly relevant to cognitive functioning.