Abstract
Objectives
This study aimed to investigate the relationship between self-perceived aging and psychological abuse among rural Chinese older adults, while considering the parallel mediating role of emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive inhibition).
Design:
A descriptive cross-sectional design was employed.
Methods
A total of 449 rural older adults were recruited from a county in Dezhou City, Shandong Province, from July to November 2023 to assess self-perceived aging, emotion regulation, and psychological maltreatment. A hypothesized model based on sociopsychological selectivity theory pathways was proposed to examine the relationships between self-perceived aging, emotion regulation, and psychological abuse. Structural equation modeling was used to test the mediated fit model.
Results
Higher self-perceived aging and expressive inhibition were positively associated with the propensity to be psychological abuse, and cognitive reappraisal was negatively associated with psychological abuse. Structural equation modelling revealed that the cognitive reappraisal strategy mediated the relationship between self-perceived ageing and psychological abuse, whereas the expressive inhibition strategy did not.
Conclusions
This study reveals that self-perceived aging mindfulness is associated with the occurrence of psychological abuse in older adults as they enter the aging stage. It further suggests that part of this effect can be explained by cognitive reappraisal or expressive inhibition. Thus, the use of emotion regulation strategies may help to reduce the incidence of psychological abuse after self-perceived ageing.
Implications:
Given the rising incidence and hidden nature of elder psychological abuse in rural China, addressing the psychological harm of abuse from the perspective of older individuals is crucial. By focusing on positive aging attitudes and utilizing cognitive reappraisal as an emotion regulation strategy, psychological maltreatment can be reduced, particularly in cases of severe negative aging attitudes and inappropriate emotion regulation strategies among older adults in rural areas of Shandong Province.