Local-Area Age Structure and Population Composition

Abstract

Objective This study examines relationships between local-area age structure and health at older ages. Method We estimate random intercept models for two disability measures using four-waves of data from a national panel study of 3,580 Japanese older adults. Results Elderly living in relatively older areas reported more difficulties with activities of daily living compared to those living in an “average” age structure. Controlling for individual characteristics and time did little to change this relationship; while a similar relationship between older age structure and functional limitations emerged. Discussion Residents of relatively older are as tended to have lower socioeconomic status, but this “disadvantage” was offset by their higher rates of employment and marriage. These compositional differences highlight the role of local-area age structure in identifying and understanding elderly health variation between places.

Neighborhood age structure and cognitive function in a nationally-representative sample of older adults in the U.S.

“…The handful of studies that have examined the age structure of neighborhoods – typically measured as the percent of older adults – are provocative and suggest that there may in fact be protective effects for older adults living in neighborhoods with a larger percentage of older adults (Browning et al, 2006; Clarke et al, 2012; Hybels et al, 2006; Kubzansky et al, 2005; Subramanian et al, 2008; Subramanian et al, 2006; Vogelsang & Raymo, 2014). …”

“…While there is some evidence that it is also protective of mental health among men and women aged 65 years or older (Kubzansky et al, 2005), Hybels et al (Hybels et al, 2006) find no association between age structure and depressive symptoms among that same age range. Only one study finds an adverse association of living in communities with more older adults – for adults 60 and over in Japan, living among a greater percentage of older adults was related to more difficulties with activities of daily living compare to living in areas with fewer older adults (Vogelsang & Raymo, 2014). …”

Population aging in local areas and subjective well-being of older adults: Findings from two studies in Japan

“…One of the strengths of this study is that our datasets did not suffer from this methodological issue (17). The residential mobility rate of older adults in Japan is much lower than that of both the younger population in Japan (42) and older adults from the US or UK (43,44).…”

“…Based on previous studies (17,22), area-level population aging was assessed according to the number of people aged 65 years or older per 100 residents, although the respondents in this study were aged 75 years old or older. We obtained data from the 2000 and 2010 population censuses for Studies 1 and 2, respectively, in accordance with the survey period (25,27).…”

“…However, unfortunately, the effect of area-level population aging in Japan remains unclear since few studies have examined the effect of area-level characteristics on individuals' health (17), except for studies on social capital (18,19) or neighborhood socioeconomic deprivations (20). Moreover, the majority of these studies used a cross-sectional design.…”