| The change and evolution of population aging is a population trend that China and even the world need to experience in the whole 21 st century,which will have a significant impact on our lives.How to deal with Chinese aging population and solve the problems and difficulties closely related to the vital interests of the elderly undoubtedly requires more holistic,targeted and innovative thinking,so as to form a China plan for the new era.According to the national medium and long term plan for active response to population aging,2022 is the target year for the initial establishment of Chinese institutional framework for active response to population aging.In the process of establishing the institutional framework and policy system for Chinese active response to population aging,we should pay full attention to the social participation of the elderly,give full play to the strength of the government,scholars,social enterprises,community grass-roots units and even the families and individuals of the elderly,and promote the effective implementation of Chinese national strategy for active response to population aging.The theoretical and practical research related to the social activities of the elderly is a hot content to actively deal with the aging of the population.Many studies have found that social activities play a positive role in promoting the health habits,consumption behavior and even subjective feelings of the elderly.Starting from the social activities of the Chinese elderly,with the help of Maslow hierarchy of needs theory,positive aging theory and social interaction theory,this study analyzes the factors affecting the social activities of the Chinese elderly and the impact of social activities on the health habits,consumption behavior and life satisfaction of the elderly,enriching the theoretical research results in the related fields of elderly society,elderly health and elderly consumption in China,It provides new ideas for Chinese population aging and related research.According to the CHARLS2018 data,the "social activity" index of the elderly is constructed to measure the activity of the elderly in social activities.The study found that the Chinese elderly have high enthusiasm and willingness to participate in social activities.However,at this stage,there is also the phenomenon of "high willingness and low participation" in social activities.The overall level of social activities of the elderly in China is still characterized by a low degree of activity,and the social form is relatively single.The forms of social activities of the elderly with high frequency include visiting,playing mahjong,playing chess,playing cards,going to the community activity room,dancing,fitness and so on.Although the sample size of stock speculation,Internet and other forms of social activities is small,the frequency is high,so the social activity is not necessarily low.In particular,Internet use has an important impact on the life of the elderly,which significantly improves the life satisfaction of the elderly.Therefore,we should establish a new concept of Internet use for the elderly group,actively promote the digital integration of the initiative of the elderly group,and improve the quality of life of the elderly group under the background of information society.Among the many factors affecting the elderly’s participation in social activities,individual factors are the basic factors,mainly including the elderly’s gender,age,education,self-rated health,physical dysfunction and cognitive depression.The middle-aged and young elderly have a higher probability of participating in social activities than the elderly.The differences in the selection of specific social activities can reflect the gender differences in the current social division of labor,social status and family status.Educational level has a significant impact on the participation of the elderly in social activities.The actual participation rate and willingness of the elderly with lower educational level are lower than those with higher educational level.However,due to the influence of factors such as low level of activities and insufficient organization and mobilization,even the elderly with high education may have their participation enthusiasm restrained.The self-rated health status is also an important factor affecting the social activity of the elderly.In this study,the self-rated health status of the elderly is better,and the activities of daily living are less adversely affected by physical dysfunction.More than 80% of the elderly have acceptable cognitive status,mild tendency of depression and happy life.Good health is an important prerequisite for the elderly to participate in social activities.Among the influencing factors of the elderly participation in social activities,family factors are also very important,mainly including marital status,family economic status and so on.The situation of the elderly living alone is relatively poor,and their social activities will be limited to a certain extent.Economic status and income are important factors affecting the social activity of urban and rural elderly.Rural elderly tend to choose social ways such as visiting.The income level of urban elderly is relatively high,and they will choose social activities that can meet their self-realization needs,which is also applicable to some rural elderly groups with high income.In this study,38.14% of the elderly samples spent time looking after their grandchildren or grandchildren.The company of grandchildren may promote the elderly to participate in social activities.Social factors are also important factors affecting the participation of Chinese elderly in social activities,mainly including the nature of urban and rural residence,whether there is an activity place and social medical insurance.Urban areas have richer infrastructure resources,the elderly participate in more convenient and diverse social activities,more channels and opportunities,and richer social activities.Pension(pension)and medical insurance also significantly increased the possibility of the elderly to participate in social activities.The government’s social security system increases the income expectation of the elderly,and then indirectly increases the consumption of the elderly,which also promotes the social activities of the elderly to a certain extent and at a certain level.Social activities do have an impact on the health of the elderly population in China.The higher the social activity,the better the self-rated health,the better the cognitive status,the happier the life,and the weaker the adverse impact of physical dysfunction.The impact of social activity on the health of the elderly varies with the gender,age,education level,urban and rural nature,marital status and economic status of the elderly.In particular,higher education level,better economic status and other advantageous individual characteristics and higher social activity have a positive impact on the health of the elderly.Active participation of the elderly in social activities can significantly improve their health status,and participation in multiple social activities and high frequency of participation in activities can significantly improve the psychological depression of the elderly in China.Therefore,the elderly should be actively encouraged to participate in colorful social activities,which is also of great significance to solve the problem of loneliness and spiritual poverty of the elderly in China.All kinds of communities at all levels,grass-roots governments and social enterprises should strengthen collaborative innovation,strengthen resource integration,and strive to build and improve the product and service system that is compatible with the health of the elderly population.The country needs to improve relevant laws and regulations,strengthen data support,actively promote relevant international cooperation,strengthen monitoring and assessment,carry out comprehensive innovation pilot projects to promote elderly health,and explore and innovate in finance,land,talent,technology and service models.With the continuous development of economy and society,there are more and more "new generation" elderly people and elderly consumers with good education and stable income.They have higher health level,better living environment,more willing to accept new things,more diversified consumption demand and more active consumption behavior.However,the relevant research on the consumption of the "new generation" elderly population in the academic community is relatively lacking.Based on the follow-up survey data of China’s health and elderly care,this paper constructs the index of "social activity",makes a relevant statistical analysis on the basic situation of the social activities of the Chinese elderly and their consumption of clothing,food,housing,transportation and medical treatment,and explores the impact of social activities on the consumption of the Chinese elderly population by using the two-stage regression model of instrumental variables,The results show that social activity does have a significant impact on the consumption of China’s elderly population.Actively participating in social activities can significantly improve the level of clothing consumption,food consumption,daily living expenses,entertainment travel(Tourism)consumption and medical and health care consumption of the elderly.Participating in a number of social activities and high frequency of participation has an obvious boosting effect on the consumption level of China’s "new generation" elderly population.Finally,as an overall evaluation index of individual’s own lifestyle and quality of life,life satisfaction is one of the most commonly used indicators to measure the quality of life and mental health of the elderly.The current mental health of the elderly in China is not ideal.The urgent problem to be solved is how to improve the life satisfaction of the elderly.Using CHARLS2018 data and instrumental variable analysis,it is found that actively participating in social activities can indeed improve the life satisfaction of the elderly.After overcoming endogenous problems by instrumental variable method,it is found that the improvement effect of social activities on the life satisfaction of the elderly is greatly improved.The Chinese elderly in the period of social transformation have a strong demand for social activities and other spiritual life.With China’s entry into an aging society,the government has been committed to the construction of an agefriendly society.We should start from many aspects and strive to improve the social activity of the current Chinese elderly,so as to promote the continuous improvement of their life satisfaction.The government,grass-roots communities and social enterprises should actively encourage the elderly to participate in colorful social activities,especially voluntary service activities,so as to realize their own value.Strengthen collaborative innovation,strengthen resource integration,and strive to build and improve the product and service system supporting the social activities of the elderly.We should be guided by the government,supported by the community,supplemented by institutions,and enrich the social activities of the elderly as an important content,so as to solidly promote the construction of a healthy China and promote the action of a healthy lifestyle for the whole people.Take geriatric hospitals,rehabilitation hospitals and nursing homes as the focus of regional health planning,increase investment and construction,build a number of regional geriatric medical centers,strengthen the construction and standardized management of mental health service system,and promote the development of care services for the elderly.While doing a good job in the pension economy and medical security,the government should vigorously build community elderly activity centers,sports parks,fitness trails and other venues and public cultural facilities to provide places for the elderly’s "square dance" and other social activities,so as to make the elderly have a sense of community value and belonging,so as to enhance life satisfaction. |
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