Who Listens, How We Share: Social Context Effects on Mood in Brief Reminiscence Among Older Adults in China

TL;DR

A study in China found that brief reminiscence can improve mood in older adults, with social context playing a key role in effectiveness.

Contribution

The study explores the immediate effects of single-session reminiscence and the influence of social context in a non-Western, low-resource setting.

Findings

Brief reminiscence increased positive affective states like lively, content, and active in older adults.

Oral sharing showed trends of greater benefit compared to writing.

The intervention was feasible in a low-resource, non-Western context.

Abstract

Older adults face heightened risks of depression and affective dysregulation, particularly in low-resource contexts. Reminiscence, involving the structured recall of autobiographical memories, has been shown to improve emotional well-being, but most evidence comes from multi-session interventions in Western populations. The immediate effects of single-session reminiscence and the influence of social context, including listener familiarity and sharing modality, remain underexplored. I conducted a quasi-randomized, mixed-design study with 91 community-dwelling older adults (mean age = 67.7 years, 54% female) in Jiujiang, China. Participants were assigned to online writing, offline writing, oral sharing with a relative, or oral sharing with an unfamiliar young adult listener. Mood was assessed before and after the session using the Brief Introspection Scale (16 items; alpha = .84) and a global affect rating. A two-by-four mixed ANOVA tested main and interaction effects, followed by item-level analyses. No significant time by group interaction was observed (p > .05). Item-level analyses revealed significant pre-post increases in positive affective states including lively, content, loving, and active (all ps < .05), with trends favoring oral sharing over writing. Brief reminiscence improved specific positive affect and proved feasible in a low-resource, non-Western context. These findings highlight its potential as an accessible, person-centered strategy for enhancing emotional well-being and underscore the importance of social context in optimizing intervention benefits.