生產性參與變化如何影響中高齡者憂鬱：臺灣中老年身心社會生活狀況長期追蹤調查的應用

Change in Productive Engagement in Later Life: How Does It Predict Late-Life Depression Over Time? A Panel Study of the Taiwan Longitudinal Study on Aging

本研究立基於生產力老化觀點，旨在探討臺灣中高齡者的生產性參與如何隨時間變化，以及生產性參與如何預測其憂鬱程度。儘管已有文獻探討社會參與和中高齡者心理健康的關係，但本土研究仍缺乏綜合中高齡者「生產性參與」（productive engagement）概念下，就業、志願服務參與、家庭照顧不同活動類型的討論與比較。本研究使用以臺灣地區中老年身心社會生活狀況長期追蹤調查資料庫（TLSA），使用2011至2015年貫時性資料，以多元迴歸分析2,695位55歲以上中高齡者生產性參與和憂鬱的變化。主要研究發現包括：(1)中高齡女性、主觀社經地位較低者，有較高憂鬱程度；(2)相較於「一直都有參與」在就業、做志工兩種生產性活動的中高齡者，「一直都沒有參與」者的憂鬱程度較高；(3)家庭照顧方面，不論照顧小孩、親友身體或是日常活動，參與變化並不顯著影響中高齡者的憂鬱程度。本研究建議，未來學術研究能探討性別與社經地位和中高齡者生產性參與的交互作用。國內社會政策應考量本土文化，應提供中高齡者在就業、志願服務、家庭照顧的三種生產性參與活動中，友善且彈性的參與機會，以降低中高齡者憂鬱風險。

Grounded in the productive aging perspective, this study examines how productive engagement among middle-aged and older adults in Taiwan changes over time and how it predicts depression. While prior research has explored the link between social participation and mental health, in Taiwan, there is a lack of studies that comprehensively compare different types of productive activities—employment, volunteering, and family caregiving—under this framework. Using longitudinal data from the Taiwan Longitudinal Study on Aging (TLSA) (2011–2015), this study employs multiple regression analysis on 2,695 individuals aged 55 and older to analyze changes in productive social participation and their association with depression. Our key findings are: (1) Higher depression levels are found among women and those with lower subjective socioeconomic status; (2) Compared to those who continuously participated in employment and volunteering, those who never participated experience higher levels of depression; (3) In family caregiving, whether providing care for children, relatives’physical health, or daily activities, changes in caregiving participation do not significantly impact depression levels. Future studies should investigate the interaction between gender, socioeconomic status, and productive engagement in later life. Social policy in Taiwan should also consider cultural contexts and provide friendly, flexible and inclusive opportunities for middle-aged and older adults to engage in employment, volunteering, and family caregiving. By doing so, social policies can help reduce depression risk and support wellbeing in later life.