Impact of Leisure Activities on Physical, Mental, and Cognitive Function Among Older Adults

Purpose: This study aimed to classify types of leisure activity and examine their associations with self-rated health, depression and cognitive function among older adults in Korea. Methods: Data were drawn from 7,804 participants in the 2020 National Survey of Older Koreans. Types of leisure activity were identified through K-means cluster analysis using respondents' first and second choices of leisure activities. Multivariable logistic regression analyses, adjusted for sociodemographic and health-related covariates were conducted to assess the primary associations between leisure types and dichotomized health outcomes. Results: Five distinct groups were identified: religious activity-oriented, varied physical activity-oriented, walking and rest-oriented, gardening and sedentary activity-oriented, and social activity-oriented. Compared to the religious activity-oriented group, the varied physical activity-oriented (OR=0.71, 95% CI=0.59–0.85), walking and rest-oriented (OR=0.55, 95% CI=0.39–0.77), and social activity-oriented groups (OR=0.46, 95% CI=0.29–0.72) showed significantly lower odds of poor self-rated health. All four types exhibited significantly lower odds of depression; notably, the social activity-oriented (OR=0.40, 95% CI=0.28–0.57) and walking and rest-oriented (OR=0.40, 95% CI=0.28–0.57) groups showed the strongest protective effect. None of the leisure groups showed a significant link to cognitive function risk when compared with the religious activity-oriented group. Conclusions: Leisure patterns involving diverse physical activities and social engagement are strongly associated with favorable health outcomes. Health promotion strategies should prioritize accessible community-based programs that encourage diverse physical and socially engaging activities, while developing targeted interventions (e.g., combining cognitive stimulation with sedentary leisure) to reduce disparities and mitigate cognitive risk among older adults.