Economic Resources, Living Arrangements, and Depression Among Older Adults in Chinese Households

• In Event: Aging and the Life Course Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): 8: Living Arrangements and Housing (In)stability

Abstract

What role do living arrangements play in shaping mental health among older adults in China? This study examines how household composition and kinship ties relate to depressive symptoms using data from the World Health Organization’s Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (WHO-SAGE) Wave 1 – China. Logistic regression analyses show that compared to living alone, Chinese older adults living with a spouse only or with grandchildren only have a lower likelihood of reporting depression. Gender differences are evident across living arrangements, with women generally more likely to report depression than men, net of socioeconomic and demographic factors. Furthermore, higher annual household income per capita is significantly associated with reduced probability of depression, suggesting the importance of economic resources in moderating mental health outcomes. Together, these findings highlight the role of family structure and economic context in shaping psychological well-being in later life within the Chinese sociocultural setting.
This abstract represents a preliminary stage of analysis. Further analyses will incorporate additional household members’ characteristics, such as sex, age, marital status, and education, to examine how these factors are associated with older adults’ mental health outcomes. These analyses will involve linking individual-level data with household-level data to better capture the influence of household structure and member characteristics.

Authors

• Jingqin Ji, University of Florida

• Jiahui Lyu, University of Florida