Life Course Inequality and Healthy Aging: Long-Term Effects of Early Adversity, Buffering Mechanisms, and Digital Governance

累積劣勢與健康老化：早期創傷的長尾效應、社會緩衝路徑與數位治理

Organizer: Dr. Fei Sun (Professor, Michigan State University, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Gerontological Social Work)

孫飛博士（美國密歇根州立大學教授; 美國老年社會工作期刊主編）

Date, Time, & Location: Saturday, June 6, 2026 | 13:45 – 15:15 | HG02

[Abstract]

This special topic session examines how life course inequality shapes mental and cognitive health in later life, with a particular focus on the long-term effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), social buffering mechanisms, and the role of digital technologies in addressing aging-related risks.

The session consists of five interrelated presentations from multiple institutions.

Presentation 1: Cumulative Life-course Adversity and Cognitive Decline Among Older Adults: Evidence from Large-scale Chinese Ageing Data. This study investigates how cumulative adversity, including ACEs and elder abuse victimization, shapes cognitive outcomes in later life. Using longitudinal data and hierarchical linear modeling, it demonstrates the compounding effects of life-course risks.

Presentation 2: Digital Practices of Dementia Care in Community Settings from a Social–Technology–Governance Perspective: A Longitudinal Study Based on an H Pilot Subdistrict. This presentation explores how digital technologies are embedded in community-based dementia care through a social–technology–governance framework, revealing both improvements in care coordination and challenges related to technological adaptation, and system integration.

Presentation 3: Medical-Social Collaborative Pathways to Bridging the Gray Digital Divide: An Empirical Study Based on the Integrated Practice of "Medical Social Work + Volunteer Service." This study examines a medical–social collaborative intervention model that improves older adults’ access to digital healthcare services, demonstrating how social work can promote digital inclusion and health equity.

Presentation 4: Digital Companionship in Later Life: Practice Implications from a Self-Determination Theory Perspective. This theoretical study synthesizes research on digital companionship (e.g., conversational agents) using Self-Determination Theory. It highlights how digital interactions can both support and undermine older adults’ psychological needs (relatedness, competence, autonomy), depending on social contexts and support conditions.

Presentation 5: Education as a Place-Specific Buffer: Rural–Urban Disparities in the Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Depression in Later Life in China. This study examines how educational attainment moderates the long-term effects of ACEs on depressive symptoms among older adults in China, highlighting rural–urban disparities and place-specific thresholds of protection.

Together, these presentations form a coherent framework linking early-life inequality, long-term health outcomes, and emerging digital interventions. The session contributes to social work research by integrating life course theory, cumulative disadvantage, and digital governance perspectives, offering important implications for trauma-informed, equity-oriented, and technology-enabled practices in the Asia-Pacific context.

B1.1  Cumulative Life-course Adversity and Cognitive Decline Among Older Adults: Evidence from Large-scale Chinese Ageing Data

*Ying Wang¹, Chenxi Li², Wenjing Shao³, Jin Ke¹, Fei Sun³

¹Research Center for Elderly Services, School of Sociology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China; ²Shenzhen Longhua District Development Research Institute, Shenzhen, China; ³School of Social Work, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA

B1.2 Digital Practices of Dementia Care in Community Settings from a Social–Technology–Governance Perspective: A Longitudinal Study Based on an H Pilot Subdistrict

Xiaoyue Hu¹,  Shijie Jing², Honglin Chen¹

1University of Eastern Finland, Finland; 2East China University of Political Science and Law, Shanghai, China

B1.3 Medical-Social Collaborative Pathways to Bridging the Gray Digital Divide: An Empirical Study Based on the Integrated Practice of "Medical Social Work + Volunteer Service"

Muhe Yu¹, Keke Jia¹, Shijie Jing2

¹Changhai Hospital, Shanghai, China; 2East China University of Political Science and Law, Shanghai, China

B1.4 Digital Companionship in Later Life: Practice Implications from a Self-Determination Theory Perspective

*Yaling Shang¹, Zheng Xu¹

¹Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China

B1.5 Education as a Place-Specific Buffer: Rural–Urban Disparities in the Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Depression in Later Life in China

*Yaofeng Chen¹, Fei Sun2

¹Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China; 2Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA