Association between intergenerational contact and cognitive function in middle-aged and older Chinese adults: The mediating role of functional disability and depressive symptoms

Previous studies have documented the impact of intergenerational contact on cognitive function in Chinese adults, however, few have focused on the possible mediating pathways. This study aimed to test a hypothetical model in which functional disability and depressive symptoms mediate the association between intergenerational contact and cognitive function. This longitudinal study included data of 3666 participants aged 45 years or older (mean age: 60.2 years) from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) from 2011 to 2015. Intergenerational contact was measured as the frequency of contact with children and categorized as frequent (≥ 1 time/week) or infrequent (< 1 time/week). Cognitive function was measured in two dimensions: episodic memory and executive function. Depressive symptoms and functional disability were assessed as continuous variables using the 10-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, Activities of Daily Living, and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scales. The mediating pathways were quantified using the SPSS PROCESS macro. Frequent intergenerational contact correlated with a better cognitive function (coefficient: 0.73, 95%CI: 0.39 to 1.06), with plausible mediated pathways via functional disability without depressive symptoms (coefficient: 0.03, 95%CI: 0 to 0.06, proportion mediated: 4.11%), depressive symptoms without functional disability (coefficient: 0.04, 95%CI: 0.01 to 0.08, proportion mediated: 5.48%), and functional disability and depressive symptoms in a chain (coefficient: 0.01, 95%CI: 0 to 0.02, proportion mediated: 1.37%). Functional disability and depressive symptoms may partly explain the association between intergenerational contact and cognitive function. Further research is needed to explore the mechanisms underlying the association between intergenerational contact and cognitive function.