Open AccessLeisure Activity Engagement Among the Oldest Old in China, 1998–2018
Author(s) -
Qiushi Feng,
Joelle H. Fong,
Wei Zhang,
Changxi Liu,
Huashuai Chen
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2020.305798
Subject(s) - china , odds , demography , gerontology , psychological intervention , odds ratio , public health , population , medicine , psychology , logistic regression , geography , sociology , nursing , archaeology , pathology , psychiatry
Objectives. To examine the trends of leisure activity engagement among the oldest old in China for the past 2 decades. Methods. Our panel data came from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey, which systematically asked respondents about their current participation in leisure activities over a 20-year period. The final sample contained 66 789 interviews from 1998 to 2018. We applied generalized estimating equations regression models in our analysis. Results. Compared with 1998, odds ratios of television watching among Chinese oldest old individuals increased by about 2 to 3 times in 2018. Meanwhile, the odds ratio of exercise declined by 24%, mostly in men; playing cards and mah-jongg declined by about 30% for men. Results also showed that reading became less popular in the oldest old, and Chinese women tended to do more housework than before. Conclusions. Our findings indicated that Chinese oldest old persons have become more sedentary and solitary in the past 2 decades. The negative trend in leisure activity engagement among the elderly Chinese population warrants policy attention, and the urgent development of public health interventions is required to reverse such trends.