The Effect of Familism Emotions on Post-Traumatic Growth Among the Elderly in China: The Mediating Roles of Taoist Personality and Sense of Community

Abstract

Purpose

Post-traumatic growth is a significant social issue in the management of active aging in elderly people. This study investigates the influence of familism emotions on post-traumatic growth (PTG) of the elderly, and the mediating role of Taoist personality and sense of community (SOC) therein, to provide a scientific basis for the development of positive aging in the elderly.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted in several communities of Hubei Province in China. A total of 338 elderly people were investigated with the Familism Emotion Scale, PTG Scale, Taoist Personality Scale and SOC Scale. SPSS 23.0 was used to derive descriptive statistics and conduct a common method bias test, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple stepwise regression analysis. Mplus 7.3 was used for structural equation modeling to test the significance of parallel mediation effects on the data.

Results

The results show that: (1) Familism emotions, Taoist personality and SOC are positively correlated with PTG; (2) Familism emotions, Taoist personality and SOC can all positively predict PTG in the elderly; (3) Both Taoist personality and SOC partially mediated the link between familism emotions and PTG in the elderly.

Conclusion

In the context of particularly constraining societal events such as COVID-19, it is necessary to pay careful attention to the impact of external environmental influences upon the elderly, such as family and community, and to encourage elderly people to cultivate a more Taoist personality. The formation of a Taoist personality offers a promising new focus for research in elderly healthcare.

Keywords:

• familism emotions
• post-traumatic growth
• Taoist personality
• sense of community
• elderly

Data Sharing Statement

The data of the present study supporting the conclusions will be made available on request by the first or corresponding authors.

Ethics Statement

This study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Wuhan Sports University (No. 2023024). Informed consent was obtained from all participants included in this study.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to express their gratitude to EditSprings (https://www.editsprings.cn) for the expert linguistic services provided.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by the Educational Commission of Hubei Province in China (Project No. 2021GA041), the Hubei Provincial Education System Philosophy and Social Science Research Program (Project No. 21ZD094), and Hubei Superior Discipline Group of Exercise and Brain Science from Hubei Provincial Department of Education.