Routine outdoor activities, particularly neighborhood walking, were associated with lower anxiety levels in older Chinese adults, with social support accounting for part of these associations, though effect sizes were small and causal inferences cannot be drawn.
Anxiety was identified in 11.57% of the older adult participants in this sample.
Social support was consistently associated with lower anxiety scores across analyses.
Overall outdoor activity frequency, neighborhood walking, and other outdoor activities were associated with lower anxiety scores.
Small indirect effects of outdoor activity on anxiety through social support were observed for overall outdoor activity, neighborhood walking, and other outdoor activities.
No significant mediation through social support was found for Tai Chi or square dancing.
The cross-sectional study design limits causal inference from the observed associations.
This research examined whether older Chinese adults who engage in outdoor activities experience less anxiety, and whether having social support might help explain that connection. Using data from nearly 9,000 adults aged 60 and older, the researchers found that about 1 in 9 participants showed signs of anxiety. Older adults who did more outdoor activities — especially neighborhood walking — tended to have lower anxiety levels. Having stronger social support (from family, caregivers, finances, and community) was also linked to lower anxiety across the board. The study found that part of the reason outdoor activities were linked to lower anxiety may be because those activities help people build or maintain social connections and support networks. This 'mediation' effect was found for neighborhood walking and general outdoor activity, but not for more structured group activities like Tai Chi or square dancing, which may operate through different mechanisms. However, the size of all these effects was described as modest or small. This research suggests that encouraging older adults to engage in accessible outdoor activities, particularly informal ones like neighborhood walking, and fostering supportive social environments may be beneficial for mental wellbeing in later life. Because the study was cross-sectional (a single snapshot in time), it cannot confirm that outdoor activity directly causes reductions in anxiety — it is possible that people who already have less anxiety are more likely to go outside or have stronger social ties. Still, the findings point to outdoor activity and social support as potentially relevant factors in healthy aging.
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Upload Your LabsLi Z, Dai H, Zhao Y. (2026). Outdoor activities and social support on anxiety in Chinese older adults: a cross-sectional study.. Frontiers in public health. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1817922