Social capital as an instrument for health literacy promotion among community-dwelling older adults in Hong Kong

This study investigates how different forms of social capital influence the health literacy of community-dwelling older adults. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 older adults aged 65 and above living in Hong Kong. Thematic analysis technique was employed to analyse the data. The findings showed that both structural and cognitive forms of social capital were available to most of the older adults. However, some struggled to access common forms of social capital, such as bonding and expressed distrust in their neighbours. Some respondents demonstrated sufficient health literacy (e.g. seeking a second medical opinion), while others had limited health literacy (e.g. difficulties seeking advice during medical consultations). The influence of social capital on older adults' health literacy was evident in four areas: (1) social capital and access to health information; (2) managing infodemic and evaluating healthcare information; (3) social capital and quality of healthcare; and (4) adverse influence of social capital for health literacy and health-related outcomes. Health literacy can impel older adults towards healthy ageing, and its reinforcement can be strengthened by incorporating various forms of social capital. This is because the health literacy of older adults is fundamentally tied to social interactions.