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Gender differential in low psychological health and low subjective well-being among older adults in India: With special focus on childless older adults

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  • Ratna Patel
  • Strong P Marbaniang
  • Shobhit Srivastava
  • Pradeep Kumar
  • Shekhar Chauhan
  • David J Simon

Abstract

Background: Gender and health are two factors that shape the quality of life in old age. Previous available literature established an associaton between various demographic and socio-economic factors with the health and well-being of older adults in India; however, the influence of childless aged is neglected. Therefore, the study examined the gender differential in psychological health and subjective well-being among older adults, focusing on childless older adults. Methodology: This study utilized data from Building a Knowledge Base on Population Aging in India (BKPAI). Psychological health and subjective well-being were examined for 9541 older adults aged 60 years & above. Descriptive statistics and bivariate analysis were used to find the preliminary results. Further, multivariate analysis has been done to fulfill the objective of the study. Results: Around one-fifth (21.2%) of the men reported low psychological health, whereas around one-fourth (25.5%) of the women reported low psychological health. Further, around 24 per cent of men and 29 per cent of women reported low subjective well-being. Results found that low psychological well-being (OR = 1.87, C.I. = 1.16–3.01), as well as low subjective well-being (OR = 1.78, C.I. = 1.15–2.76), was higher in childless older women than in childless older men. Higher education, community involvement, good self-rated health, richest wealth quintile, and residing in urban areas significantly decrease the odds of low subjective well-being and low psychological well-being among older adults. Conclusion: There is a need to improve older adults’ psychological health and subjective well-being through expanded welfare provisions, especially for childless older adults. Moreover, there is an immediate requirement to cater to the needs of poor and uneducated older adults.

Suggested Citation

  • Ratna Patel & Strong P Marbaniang & Shobhit Srivastava & Pradeep Kumar & Shekhar Chauhan & David J Simon, 2021. "Gender differential in low psychological health and low subjective well-being among older adults in India: With special focus on childless older adults," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(3), pages 1-16, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0247943
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0247943
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Pushpendra Singh & Falguni Pattanaik, 2020. "Unfolding unpaid domestic work in India: women’s constraints, choices, and career," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 6(1), pages 1-13, December.
    2. Lucky Singh & Perianayagam Arokiasamy & Prashant Kumar Singh & Rajesh Kumar Rai, 2013. "Determinants of Gender Differences in Self-Rated Health Among Older Population," SAGE Open, , vol. 3(2), pages 21582440134, May.
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