Document is current

Article History

Received: 20 July 2025

Accepted: 19 January 2026

First Online: 3 February 2026

Declarations

:

: All procedures involving human participants adhered to the ethical standards of the relevant institutional and/or national research committees, as well as the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its subsequent amendments or equivalent ethical guidelines. The survey was conducted in compliance with Articles 38, 39, and 40 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China and Article 9, Chapter I of the Statistics Law of the People’s Republic of China. As such, formal ethical review was not required. Verbal informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to the study. The survey design, being in line with the aforementioned legal frameworks, permitted the use of verbal consent without ethics committee review. Additionally, interviewers documented the consent process in detail, including participants’ agreement or refusal to participate, the timing of their response, and reasons for non-participation where applicable. Records of the informed consent process are maintained by the Institute of Gerontology and the National Survey Research Center at Renmin University of China.

: Not applicable.

: The authors declare no competing interests.