Profiles and Associated Factors of Health-Related Quality of Life in Chinese rural older adults : A Latent Profile Analysis

Background With the development of society, the problem of population aging is becoming increasingly severe. The degree of population aging in rural areas of China is higher than in urban areas, and the gap continues to widen, making the ‘urban-rural inversion’ of aging evident. To actively respond to aging, understanding the current status of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and its influencing factors in rural older adults, and taking positive measures to improve the HRQoL of the older adults is particularly important. This study aims to explore the HRQoL profiles and associated factors among rural older adults in China. Methods A multi-stage stratified random sampling method was used to survey 5,435 rural older adults in nine prefectural cities of Guizhou Province, China, between May 2024 and October 2024. The eight dimensions of the SF-12 were used as input variables for latent profile analysis (LPA) to explore the profiles of HRQoL. Multivariate logistic regression was adopted to examine the relationship between latent HRQoL’ s profiles and associated factors. Results The LPA identified four potential profiles: ‘Low HRQoL (8.8%)’, ‘Moderate HRQoL (61.8%)’, ‘High Vitality-Health, Emotional Challenges (5.8%)’, and ‘High HRQoL (23.6%)’. Using P4 (High HRQoL) as a reference, previous occupation as a farmer and chronic disease were more likely to be in the P1 (Low HRQoL) subgroup; previous occupation as a farmer and primary caregiver as a child were more likely to be in the P2 (Moderate HRQoL) subgroup; primary caregiver as a child and more community recreational activities were more likely to be in the P3 (High Vitality-Health, Emotional Challenges) subgroup; educational attainment, annual economic income, number of children, self-care status, occupation, chronic disease, social recreational activities, perceived social support, general self-efficacy and sleep quality were influential factors in the HRQoL rural older adults. Conclusion Using the sub-dimensions of the SF-12, HRQoL characteristics of older adults in rural China can be identified. This study identified four distinct HRQoL profiles among rural older adults in Guizhou Province: the conventional ‘High HRQoL’, ‘Moderate HRQoL’, and ‘Low HRQoL’ subgroups, as well as a unique ‘High Vitality-Health, Emotional Challenges’ subgroup. Factors associated with different HRQoL profiles, compared to the ‘High HRQoL’ group, include education level, occupation, household income, number of children, self-care ability, chronic diseases, primary caregiver, participation in community activities, perceived social support, general self-efficacy and sleep quality. These findings provide a basis for designing targeted interventions to improve HRQoL among older adults with different profiles.