Intelligent living environments and older adults’ health outcomes: roles of social support and self-efficacy

Background The development of science and technology enables intelligent technologies to assist in the health management of older people in many aspects of health care and daily life.However, the factors that influence the health of older people in intelligent living environments have not been sufficiently explored.Methods Focusing on the three dimensions of health-mental, physical, and social-this study examined the effects of social support, self-efficacy, and intelligent living environments on depression, anxiety, stress, quality of life, and social participation among older adults.It also explored the mediating role of self-efficacy and the moderating mechanism of intelligent living environments.A multistage sampling method was used to survey 1123 participants aged 60 years and older. ResultsSocial support significantly improved older adults' self-efficacy and mental health (by reducing depression, anxiety, and stress), although it had no direct effect on quality of life or social participation.Self-efficacy positively influenced stress levels, quality of life, and social participation and mediated the effects of social support on these outcomes.Intelligent living environments, despite exacerbating depression and anxiety, promoted quality of life and social participation.Furthermore, they weakened the positive relationship between self-efficacy and both quality of life and social participation. ConclusionsThis study contributes to the theoretical framework on the impact of social support on the health of older adults, deepens the understanding of the mediating role of self-efficacy, and provides a new perspective on the complex relationship between intelligent living environments and the health of older adults.These findings underscore the importance of strengthening social networks to optimize psychological health support and highlight the potential of self-efficacy enhancement programs, which can be piloted to help older adults better manage stress, improve quality of life, and increase social participation.Finally, this study calls for targeted improvements to intelligent living environments to address their contradictory health impacts.