Examination of the Adlerian constructs of activity and social interest with depression among recent Korean retirees: Meaning in life as a mediator

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether (a) the Adlerian construct of activity and social interest would be related to decreased depression and (b) meaning in life would mediate these relationships among Korean retirees. A total of 219 Korean retirees who had retired within the last three years completed the survey. The survey included the Activity Scale, Social Interest Scale, The Meaning in Life Questionnaire, and Center for Epidemiology Depression Scale. Structural equation modeling was conducted to analyze data. The results indicated that activity was directly associated with depression (β = −.453, p < .001) and indirectly related to depression through meaning in life (indirect path: β = −.279, p <  .05, 95% CI = −.483, ∼−.145). Similarly, social interest was found to be directly related to depression (β = −.710, p < .001) and indirectly related to depression through meaning in life (indirect path: β = −.227, p < .05, 95% CI = −.427, ∼−.086). These findings suggest that meaning in life is an important avenue through which activity and social interest are linked to a lower level of depression among Korean retirees.