Mental health literacy and its relationship with health-promoting behaviors of community-dwelling older adults: A latent profile analysis

Objectives: To explore the latent profiles of mental health literacy among community-dwelling older adults and analyze their relationship with health-promoting behaviors. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 321 community-dwelling older adults using a general information questionnaire, the Chinese version of the Mental Health Literacy Scale, and the Geriatric Health Promotion Scale. A latent profile analysis was performed to identify latent profiles of mental health literacy among community-dwelling older adults. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to explore the predictive factors of different profiles. One-way ANOVA was applied to examine the relationship between profiles and health-promoting behaviors. Results: The mental health literacy of community-dwelling older adults was classified into three latent profiles: Profile 1, low mental health literacy group (21.81 %); Profile 2, medium mental health literacy group (46.42 %); and Profile 3, high mental health literacy group (31.78 %). Sex and living status were predictors of different profiles. The total score difference of health-promoting behaviors among the three profiles was statistically significant. Conclusions: There is significant heterogeneity in mental health literacy among community-dwelling older adults. Promoting mental health literacy can effectively increase health-promoting behaviors. Targeted interventions for community-dwelling older adults in different profiles are recommended to improve their health-promoting behaviors. (c) 2025 Elsevier Inc. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.