What Does Thriving in Life Tell Us About the Lives of Chinese Urban Older Adults? The Relationship Among Thriving in Life, Quality of Life, Suicidal Ideation, and Attitude Toward Own Aging

Background: We need more knowledge to tackle the rapidly growing aging population issue and maintain older adults’ health/well-being. This study aims to assess the status of thriving in life among Chinese urban older adults, and identify it’s relationship with attitude toward own aging, and quality of life, and test whether attitude toward own aging moderates the association between thriving in life and quality of life or between thriving in life and suicidal ideation.Methods: Primary data was collected through a cross-sectional survey among Chinese urban older adults from three provinces in China; they were invited to complete an anonymous survey using face-to-face interview from December 2019 to January 2020. In total, data from 764 older adults (effective response rate: 81·28 %) were analyzed.Findings: Approximately 44·39% of participants reported positive responses toward the four domains of thriving in life. The average score of thriving in life was 3·39±0·554 point. Thriving in life (β = 0·360, P <0·01 ) and attitude toward own aging (β = -0·208, P<0·01 ) both had a positive association with quality of life. Moreover, attitude toward own aging (β = -0·643, P <0·01 ) moderated the association between thriving in life and quality of life, and association between thriving in life and suicidal ideation (β =-0·588, P <0·01 ). Thriving in life (β = -0·217, P <0·01 ) was a protective factor for suicidal ideation for older adults.Interpretation: Chinese urban older adults were reportedly thriving in life, which contributed to increased quality of life and reduced suicidal ideation. Targeted interventions for older adults should be devised to promote thriving in life and prevent the emergence of attitude toward own aging, further raising quality of life and reducing suicidal ideation.Funding: None to declare. Declaration of Interest: None to declare. Ethical Approval: The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Harbin Medical University. The written informed consent form was included at the beginning of the questionnaire. A written informed consent has been obtained from all participants to in the survey.