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As the aging continues, China has become the country with the largest older population. In order to ensure the well-being of older adults in their later years, the whole society is increasingly concerned about the mental health of older adults. In 2019, we conduct a questionnaire survey in Shaanxi Province. Stratified random sampling is used to select three representative cities, and 677 samples are selected from the survey results for research. By using the structural equation model, we aim to reveal the mechanism of leisure activities' influence on mental health of the older adults and verify whether social support and perceived stress play a mediating role. The study finds that the older adults' leisure activities have no significant direct impact on mental health. Social support has a significant mediating effect between leisure activities and mental health of the older adults. Leisure activities indirectly affect the mental health of the older adults through social support, and participation in leisure activities can improve the social support of the older adults, thus improving the mental health level of the older adults. Perceived stress plays a significant mediating role between leisure activities and mental health of the older adults. By participating in leisure activities, the perceived stress of the older adults will be reduced, thus improving their mental health. Social support and perceived stress play a sufficient mediating role in the influence of leisure activities on mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase in aging in China, the health problems of older adults, especially mental health problems, have become a concern for the whole society. This article selected urban and rural older adults and analyzed the impact of social support on their mental health using a binary logistic model. It was found that under the current urban–rural dichotomy, the effects of social support on the mental health of urban and rural older adults are significantly different. In social support, first, the fairness and satisfaction with the social security system only had a significant effect on the mental health of urban older adults and had no significant effect on the rural older adults. Second, the closeness of contact with grassroots community workers had a significant impact on the mental health of older adults in urban and rural areas. From informal social support, the mental health of rural older adults was mainly influenced by the support of their children, reflecting the influence of the traditional culture of "filial piety". Furthermore, the mental health of urban older adults was mainly influenced by neighborhood support, reflecting the importance of "close neighbors are better than distant relatives". Based on the results of the empirical study, this article suggests that to promote the mental health of older adults, we should start by strengthening the formal social support system, establishing high-quality community service facilities, and emphasizing the role of informal social support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the national energy strategy is to mine westward, the deep coal resources under the super-thick and weak cementation overburden in the western mining area will play a critical role in China's sustainable economic growth. The super-thick and weak cementation overburden has weaker lithology, thicker strata, no large joints, bedding development, and better integrity. Therefore, its movement rule is inevitably different from that of the weak overburden and the middle hard overburden in Central China and Eastern China. However, lack of studies on the movement of the super-thick and weak cementation overburden has led to severe constraints for the large-scale exploitation of coal resources under the super-thick and weak cementation overburden in the western mining area. This study explored the surface movement rule and the influence of overburden characteristics on strata movement with field measurement and numerical simulation. The findings indicate that the surface reaches full mining and the subsidence coefficient is about 0.9 when D1 (width in the dip direction) and D3 (length in the strike direction) are 3 times H0 (the mean mining depth) or more. The strike mining degree has a certain influence on the surface movement law, the maximum difference of the surface subsidence coefficient is 0.35, and the maximum difference of the horizontal movement coefficient is 0.05. In addition, the control effect of the Zhidan group sandstone is stronger. Thus, its first breaking results in surface sinking in a fractured manner when D1 is about 1.3 times H0 and D3 is 3 times H0 or more. The above results can provide reference for the safe mining and control of the super-thick weak cementation overburden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: China's government has invested a great deal of resources to improve the coverage rate of community care facilities for the elderly. However, the facilities that have been built are underutilized., Methods: Referring to the Anderson model, a framework for analyzing the utilization of community care facilities for the elderly was constructed. Descriptive statistics on survey data from 17 communities demonstrated the status of the utilization, and binary logistic regression analysis examined the influencing factors of the utilization., Results: Built community care facilities for the elderly are underutilized and there are significant differences in the influencing factors of the utilization between daily care facilities, medical care facilities, recreation facilities, and spiritual comfort facilities., Conclusions: The main reasons for the underutilization can be delineated as follows: (1) The demand for community care facilities is outstripped by the supply, resulting in a surplus; (2) Complex constraints on demand for facilities due to insufficient enabling resources; (3) Inadequacy of community care facilities in meeting expectations. (4) High substitutability of community care facilities; (5) Bureaucratic pressure hindering facility development. To address the underutilization of community care facilities, it is recommended to clarify the community responsibility boundaries for elderly care and the role that the market plays in community care facilities for the elderly., (© 2024. The Author(s).)