Testing conditionality with Bourdieu's capital theory: How economic, social, and embodied cultural capital are associated with diet and physical activity in the Netherlands

Factors associated with subjective oral health among older adults aged 65 and over living alone: the role of social capital

BACKGROUND

With the global increase in the number of older adults and single-person households, attention is increasingly being directed toward older adults living alone as a vulnerable population in public health. These individuals are particularly susceptible to deficiencies in social capital, one of the key social determinants of health. However, research on the relationship between social capital and oral health among older adults living alone remains limited. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the factors associated with oral health in this population, with a specific focus on social capital.

METHODS

This study analyzed data from the Korean Community Health Survey, 2023, focusing on 21,677 older adults aged 65 and over living alone. The dependent variable was subjective oral health level, while independent variables included social capital factors such as trust, reciprocity, social network, and social participation. Hierarchical logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the relationship between social capital and subjective oral health levels, with results presented as odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals.

RESULTS

Older adults aged 65 and over living alone were found to be particularly vulnerable to poor subjective oral health, especially those with older age, lower educational attainment, lower income levels, lack of economic activity, and residence in rural areas. Among the social capital variables, the analysis showed that individuals without reciprocity had 1.30 times higher odds of worse subjective oral health compared to those with reciprocity (OR = 1.30, 95% CI 1.18-1.42). Similarly, individuals without social participation had 1.31 times higher odds of worse subjective oral health compared to those with social participation (OR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.21-1.42).

CONCLUSIONS

Social capital is significantly associated with the subjective oral health levels of older adults aged 65 and over living alone. This emphasizes the importance of enhancing social capital to mitigate oral health inequalities among socially vulnerable older adults living alone.

Music in healthcare: Investigating music preferences for pain management across twenty countries

Music is increasingly investigated in healthcare to manage pain, anxiety and stress. Previous studies have demonstrated that listening to (preferred) music is effective for pain relief, but rarely explore whether people are open to instrumentalizing music in healthcare. Therefore, this study investigates 1) to what extent people across twenty countries are willing to listen to music when experiencing pain in healthcare, and 2) which music genres they choose, in light of their national context, background characteristics, and overall music preferences. In addition, we investigate the universality of the so-called 'Mozart effect', which describes the belief that classical music is superior in healthcare, despite research suggesting that favorite music, irrespective of genre, is most effective. To answer these questions, we use data from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry's international survey (2023), which includes twenty countries and 33,629 participants. In total, a large majority (86.5%) wants to listen to music when experiencing pain in healthcare. Although participants predominantly select music in line with their favorite music genres (73.1%), a smaller trend toward selecting classical music - in line with the 'Mozart effect' - is observed. Among those who prefer to listen to a music genre that they did not list as their favorite, classical music is predominantly chosen (43.3%). Furthermore, there are notable differences between national populations and across social groups in terms of preference for music when experiencing pain. These insights can be crucial for implementing music in healthcare worldwide, emphasizing the need for a culturally sensitive and personalized approach.

The effect of cultural capital on the physical fitness level of a Chinese older adult population: chain mediation of household income and stockpiling of physical fitness goods

Background

Health behaviors of older people are influenced by many factors, and physical activity are important lifestyle behaviors that promote healthy aging.

Purpose

This study is to analyze the intrinsic mechanism of the influence of cultural capital on the physical fitness level of older people, and to provide a theoretical basis for the improvement of the differences in physical fitness level caused by the differences in physical fitness concepts of the classes brought about by cultural capital, and the unequal distribution of resources.

Methods

The subjects of this study were derived from people over 60 years old in the 2020 China National Fitness Activity Status Survey, and a total of 20,896 samples were obtained using the principle of multi-stage stratified random sampling. The dependent variable was assessed by the Physical Activity Rating Scale (PARS-3) to calculate the physical activity level score of the older adult population. Pearson correlation analysis and stratified regression methods were used to analyze and explore the factors influencing the physical fitness level of sport older adult people, followed by quantile regression to explore the distribution of the influence of institutional cultural capital in different physical fitness levels. The use of quantile regression not only provided a robust test of the results of stratified linear regression, but also analyzed the differential effects of institutional cultural capital among individuals with different fitness levels. Finally, Bootstrap methods were used to test the mediating effects of household income and physical cultural capital.

Results

Institutional cultural capital (p < 0.01), household income (p < 0.01), physical cultural capital (p < 0.01), and health status (p < 0.01) are all conducive to improving fitness levels among older people. Family income (95%CI = [0.467, 0.235]) and material cultural capital (95%CI = [0.199, 0.291]) play a chain mediating role.

Conclusion

Cultural capital has a positive impact on the health of older people, mediated by household income and stocks of sporting goods. An increase in the level of cultural capital of older persons is beneficial to the improvement of health perception. Therefore, it is possible to promote the improvement of physical fitness among older people through the enhancement of their cultural capital and to realize healthy aging.

Understanding educational inequalities in sports participation through structurally based resources and individual agency - a sequential mediation analysis

Educational inequalities in sports participation remain a public health issue in the Netherlands. Combining structurally based resources from Pierre Bourdieu's theory of capital with Amartya Sen's conceptualization of individual agency may offer new insights into the complex mechanisms that drive these inequalities. Specifically, we posited that the way individuals are able to exercise their agency within the structurally based economic, social, and cultural resources they have access to may help explain educational inequalities in sports participation.Data from two waves of the GLOBE study (2014, 2021) were used to test whether two sequential mediators, structurally based resources followed by individual agency, help explain the relationship between educational level and sports participation. Adults aged 25 and older residing in Eindhoven, the Netherlands self-reported highest attained educational level, structurally based resources (economic, social, and embodied cultural capital), individual agency (self-control, perceived choice, and reflexivity), and sports participation. A sequential mediation analysis using structural equation modelling was used to test the direct effect of education on sports participation, the sequential indirect effect through both mediators, and partial indirect effects through each mediator individually.Educational level was positively associated with sports participation. The hypothesized sequential mediation pathway was not supported; educational level was positively associated with structurally based resources and structurally based resources were positively associated with individual agency, but individual agency was not related to sports participation. Though not through individual agency, structurally based resources helped explain educational inequalities in sports participation.Having access to more economic, social, and cultural resources may empower individuals by increasing their agency. This increased agency was not associated with sports participation, which could be because sports participation is not universally valued as a goal. The conceptualization and operationalization of individual agency in the context of sports participation warrants more research. We found that structurally based resources helped explain a substantial portion of educational inequalities in sport, so we propose that policies alleviating more than just economic barriers to sports participation, but also social and cultural barriers, may help reduce educational inequalities in sports participation in the Netherlands.

Building blocks for a happy life: Longitudinal associations between early life income, mentorship and later well-being

Longitudinal data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID; N = 2996) were used to test hypotheses about the link between well-being and financial and social developmental resources. Results suggest that higher average family income from birth to age 18, and personal and professional mentoring received between 17 and 30, were positively associated with indicators of positive well-being and negatively related to negative indicators of well-being. Interactions between early life family income and mentoring during emerging adulthood were not significant predictors of any of the well-being outcomes. In all cases, the magnitudes of the coefficients became larger when simultaneously accounting for early life income, emerging adulthood mentoring, and their interactions-suggesting that financial and social resources in earlier life are independently linked to later life well-being. Findings highlight that mentoring received in emerging adulthood benefits downstream hedonic and eudemonic well-being, regardless of financial resources.

Coping strategies of food insecure households with children and adolescents in Uruguay, a high-income Latin American country: A qualitative study through the lens of Bourdieu's theories of capitals and practice

Food insecurity has been associated with negative short, medium, and long-term health consequences, which are more detrimental for children and adolescents. These effects may depend on the coping strategies developed to deal with food shortages. The present research aimed at exploring coping strategies in food insecure households with children and adolescents in Uruguay, incorporating sociological theoretical insights from Bourdieu. A qualitative approach based on individual semi-structured interviews was used. A total of 40 interviews were conducted with adults who had parental responsibilities of children and adolescents and who received different types of food assistance, between July and December 2022, in four cities. Results showed that adults tend to develop a wide range of coping strategies aimed at: reducing food expenditure, increasing the availability of money for purchasing food, increasing food availability and/or rationing the food available in the household. Some of the strategies were implemented regardless of the severity of food insecurity, whereas others were characteristic of the moderate and severe levels of the construct. Evidence to support the mediation effect of coping strategies on health outcomes was found. Discourses suggested that lower accumulation of economic and cultural capital may be aligned with the adoption of less socially accepted mechanisms to access to food. Expressions of a specific habitus aimed at securing food were identified among participants with more deprivations. Taken together, the findings suggest that coping strategies may not be a universal or invariant sequence according to the severity of food insecurity and stress the importance of considering households' resources and local context for the development of strategies to improve access to food.

Childhood migration experience and adult health: evidence from China's rural migrants

BACKGROUND

Place of residence plays an influential role in shaping individual development, and studies have established links between Childhood migration experience (CME) and health outcomes through maturity. Over the past three decades, China has undergone one of the largest rural-to-urban migrations, however, little is known about the effect of CME on rural migrants' adult health in China.

METHODS

Data from 7035 members of the 2016 and 2018 China Labor-force Dynamics Survey were analyzed. CME was measured by whether the place of residence and place of birth changed at the age of 14 years. Three measures of health (self-assessed health, BMI, and mental health scale) were obtained. Causal inferential analysis was performed, using the Probit model, the OLS model and the Propensity Score Matching (PSM) method, to explore the impact of CME on the adult health of rural migrants.

RESULTS

Overall, compared to individuals who did not migrate in childhood, the probability of reporting "very unhealthy", "rather unhealthy", and "fair" in the self-assessed health of the rural migrants with CME decreased by 0.23%, 1.55%, and 5.53%, the probability of reporting "healthy" and "very healthy" increased by 1.94% and 5.38%, the probability of BMI within the normal range was higher by 7.32%, and the mental health test scores were 0.2591 points higher significantly. Furthermore, in comparison with childhood non-migration, both cross-county and cross-city migration promoted the health status of rural migrants, but the positive effect of cross-province migration was not significant; from the gender perspective, CME could more dramatically improve rural women's adult health than men, especially in mental health.

CONCLUSION

CME can significantly improve adult health, including physical and mental health, and the positive effect is more obvious among women, helping to reduce gender differences in health. For the migration distance, attention can be focused on the long-distance migrating individuals, who should get more support.