WITHDRAWN: Motivation to strengthen social ties rejuvenates the diurnal cortisol profiles in Chinese elders

Psychobiological research on aging in humans has been confounded by individual differences that have not been precisely characterized. This study is an attempt to throw light on the issue by re-analyzing data reported by Lai et al. (2012) using multilevel modeling. Saliva samples were collected immediately, 15 min, 30 min, 45 min, 3 h, 6 h, 9 h, and 12 h, after waking each day for two consecutive days from 82 healthy elders in Hong Kong (equal number of men and women, mean age = 73.09 yrs). Day, saliva sampling time, and the motivation to strengthen social ties (Network Cultivation) were treated as fixed variables). Cortisol awakening response and diurnal decline were examined in relation to Network Cultivation. Results showed that participants scoring higher on Network Cultivation exhibited a stronger cortisol awakening response and a faster diurnal decline in comparison to those who scored lower on Network Cultivation. This pattern of findings suggests that elders who are more socially embedded exhibit a diurnal cortisol profile typically seen in younger people. Development of intervention/education programs to promote social embeddedness in the elderly is warranted.