Social support as a moderator of physical disability and mental health in older Vietnamese immigrants in the U.S.: Results from the Vietnamese aging and care survey (VACS)

Abstract

After the Vietnam War, 1.3 million Vietnamese migrated to the U.S. where they are the fourth largest Asian American subgroup. However, little is known about their health compared to other Asian subgroups. As such, we developed the Vietnamese Aging and Care Survey to understand older Vietnamese immigrants' health in Houston, Texas (N=132). We examined how social support moderated the relationship between their physical disability and mental health (depressive symptoms and loneliness). Most respondents rated their health as fair/poor and more than half lived in extended family households or senior housing in ethnic enclaves. Having more physical disabilities was associated with higher depressive symptoms and loneliness, but higher social support moderated the effect of physical disability on loneliness. Local policymakers and stakeholders might strategize using the existing culturally and linguistically appropriate daycare centers and home and community-based services to mitigate depression and loneliness among older Vietnamese immigrants with physical disabilities.

Keywords: Depressive symptoms; Immigrants; Loneliness; Physical disabilities; Social support; Vietnamese.