Abstract

Subjective well-being in later life is important to individuals, their families, and society, because it dictates how we think, feel, and behave [1]. However, studies in China have found that Chinese older adult’s subjective well-being is much worse compared to 20 years ago [2]. This decrease may be due to methodological differences, but it may also reflect changes in social support that China has experienced in recent years. Chinese culture (i.e., the Confucian norm of filial piety) expects adult children to be the primary providers of support for their older parents by living with them [3]. However, significant societal and economic transitions (e.g., children’s migration, one-child policy) since the 1980s have weakened the traditional social support pattern of older adults [4,5]. Empirical studies conducted during the past several decades have focused on the relationship between social support and subjective wellbeing among Chinese older adults. The majority of them explored the main effect of social support on Chinese older adults’ subjective well-being. They found that having a bigger social network (e.g., more friends), receiving assistance or financial aid when needed, and frequent contact with others were positively associated with Chinese older adults’ subjective wellbeing in China [6-17].