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2025-12-28
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Copyright (c) 2025 Jinyang Feng, Kai Cheng, Lin Lv

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How to Cite
Music-Based Community Interventions for Healthy Aging: Psychological Mechanisms of Emotional Regulation in Older Adults
Jinyang Feng
Eötvös Loránd University,Faculty of Education and Psychology, Budapest,1075, Hungary, woshilulu@student.elte.hu
Kai Cheng
People’s Hospital of Rizhao,Department of Orthopedics,Rizhao,276800,China, 1606205598@qq.com
Lin Lv
Shandong University,School of Arts, Weihai 264209, China, 837003764@qq.com
DOI: https://doi.org/10.59429/esp.v10i12.4367
Keywords: Community-based; intervention group; emotional regulation
Abstract
The researchers compared the outcomes of eight-week music-based community-based intervention on emotional wellbeing and emotional regulating in 200 older adults in China (Intervention n = 100; Control n = 100). The intervention members used to perform group singing, guided music listening, and rhythmic movement twice a week where the members of the control group used to carry out regular activities within the community. Emotional outcomes, positive affect, negative affect, perceived stress, and depressive symptoms, and emotional regulation strategies, cognitive reappraisal, and expressive suppression, were measured at both baseline (T1) and post-test (T2).
The findings revealed strong changes in the intervention group in comparison to the control group. The intervention group showed a high improvement in positive affect (T1 = 2.74; T2 = 3.25) with the difference in positive affect being +0.51 as compared to control group (t = 21.07, p < .001). The negative effect reduced significantly (Intervention: 2.54 → 2.15; Control: 2.56 → 2.54), with a group difference of −0.39 versus −0.02 (t = −16.46, p < .001). There was also a significant decrease in perceived stress (Intervention: 2.87 → 2.32; Control: 2.84 → 2.82), and the mean change of - 0.55 in comparison with mean change of −0.02 (t = −23.96, p < .001). The difference between the depressive symptoms was found to be significant (Intervention: 3.01 → 2.63; Control: 2.99 → 2.98), and the difference in the mean change between −0.38 versus −0.01 (t = −15.76, p < .001).
The intervention group had a better emotional regulation with increased cognitive reappraisal (+0.63 vs. +0.05; t = 27.18, p < .001) and reduced expressive suppression (−0.41 vs. −0.01; t = −22.72, p < .001). There was partial support of indirect effects in mediation analyses, given that the intervention had a strong predictor of increase in reappraisal (β = 0.88, p < .001), but reappraisal did not affect prediction of positive affect change group controlling (β = 0.067, p = .361), showing little mediation although strong direct effects.
In general, the intervention effected significant and clinically significant changes in emotional functioning in the older adults. Results indicate that music interventions based on culture and community can be useful in improving emotional well-being and emotional regulation, which provides a scalable approach to improving healthy aging in China.
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