Depression mediates the relationship between social capital and health-related quality of life among Chinese older adults in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study

Aim: To explore the association between social capital and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and to determine whether depression mediates the association among Chinese older adults in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Design: A descriptive cross-sectional research design. Methods: The Geriatric Depression Scale-15, Social Capital Questionnaire and 12-item Short-Form Health Survey were used to investigate 1201 older adults selected from Jinan, Shandong Province, China, using a multistage stratified cluster random sampling method. Results: Pearson's correlation analysis revealed a significant positive correlation between social capital and HRQoL (r = 0.269, p < 0.01). Multivariate linear regression analyses demonstrated that social capital was significantly negatively associated with depression (beta = - 0.072, p < 0.001) and that depression was associated with HRQoL (beta = -1.031, p < 0.001). The mediation analyses showed that depression mediated the association between social capital and HRQoL, and the indirect effect size was 0.073 (95% confidence interval: 0.050, 0.100).