Improvements to the living environment and mental health among older adults: an empirical study based on the Chinese experience.

BACKGROUND: Against the backdrop of global aging and sustainable development, China is confronted with the dual challenges of improving mental health among the older adults and enhancing their living environment. METHODS: Based on data from the 2020 China Longitudinal Study of Aging, this study employs an ordinary least squares regression model to investigate the impact of improvements to the living environment on the mental health of the older adults and its underlying mechanisms. RESULTS: The results indicate that improvements to the living environment can extend beyond the realm of physical health and exert significant positive effect on the mental health of older adults. Every one-unit increase in environmental satisfaction reduces the older adults' depression scores by 0.426 points. Mechanism analysis indicates that improvements to the living environment enhance the mental health of older adults through three parallel pathways: improving sleep quality (physiological pathway), promoting social participation (behavioral pathway), and strengthening confidence in the future (cognitive pathway). However, the psychological benefits of improvements in the living environment are constrained by three factors-urban-rural disparities, economic income, and personal health, these benefits are more pronounced among three specific groups of older adults: those in rural areas, those with high-income, and those who self-reported good health. CONCLUSION: Consequently,future environmental policies should prioritize the synergistic benefits of mental health, and incorporate them into performance evaluation frameworks. This will better facilitate the channeling of policy resources toward groups with limited access to such benefits, further foster an age-friendly social environment, and ultimately promote the deep integration of improvements to the living environment with active aging.