Healthcare deprivation matters: a novel framework to unveil the influencing mechanisms of aging anxiety and healthcare utilization.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Aging anxiety is not only a health issue but also a stress response to the structural risk of insufficient medical resources. This study aims to reveal the impact of aging anxiety on individual healthcare utilization and the complex psychosocial mechanisms behind it.

Methods

Based on large-scale data from the 2021 Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS), the study employs a Double Machine Learning (DML) method to build a causal inference model. The random forest algorithm is used to estimate the marginal effect of aging anxiety on healthcare utilization. The robustness checks and placebo tests are conducted to further verify the model's stability and validity. Finally, heterogeneity analysis explored the differential impact of independent variables across groups by a

SUBMITTER: Luo Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12558805 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature