Ong, Anthony D;
Cintron, Dakota W;
Yoneda, Tomiko;
Beck, Emorie D;
Jackson, Kathryn;
Luo, Jing;
Mroczek, Daniel K;
... Graham, Eileen K; + view all
(2025)
Social asymmetry and physical health in the United States and Japan.
Health Psychology
, 44
(5)
pp. 509-517.
10.1037/hea0001409.
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Social relationships are increasingly recognized as crucial determinants of health, but cultural variations in the health implications of social disconnection remain understudied. This study examines how nationality, reflecting cultural differences in social norms, moderates the relationship between social asymmetry and physical health in Japanese and U.S. adults. We hypothesized that the association between greater social asymmetry and poorer health would be attenuated in Japan compared to the United States. METHOD: The sample comprised adults aged 23-84 years from Japan (N = 1,027) and the United States (N = 6,650) participating in the Midlife in Japan and Midlife in the United States longitudinal studies. Social asymmetry was quantified as the residual score from regressing loneliness on social isolation, with positive residuals indicating higher loneliness than expected based on isolation levels. Physical health was a latent variable indicated by chronic conditions, symptoms, activities of daily living, and physical activity. Structural equation modeling examined the moderating effect of nationality on the social asymmetry-health link. RESULTS: Across both cultural contexts, greater social asymmetry (i.e., higher loneliness than predicted by isolation) was associated with worse physical health. However, as hypothesized, this relationship was significantly weaker in Japan compared to the United States, highlighting the role of cultural context in shaping the health implications of discrepant social experiences. CONCLUSIONS: Findings contribute to understanding cultural variations in the health consequences of social disconnection and emphasize the need to consider sociocultural factors when examining social determinants of health across diverse populations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Social asymmetry and physical health in the United States and Japan |
| Location: | United States |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1037/hea0001409 |
| Publisher version: | https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/hea0001409 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Humans, Japan, United States, Male, Female, Aged, Middle Aged, Adult, Loneliness, Aged, 80 and over, Cross-Cultural Comparison, Health Status, Social Isolation, Young Adult, Longitudinal Studies, Social Norms, Activities of Daily Living |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health > Behavioural Science and Health |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10207738 |
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