Widowhood and mortality risk of older people in rural China: do gender and living arrangement make a difference?

Liu, Huijun; Jiang, Quanbao; Feldman, Marcus W.

doi:10.1017/s0144686x19000436

Cited by 13 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Our results are inconsistent with some recent empirical studies which show daughter advantage in providing instrumental and emotional care ( 17 – 19 ), echoing Cong and Silverstein ( 23 ) and Liu and Harper ( 5 ). These differences are contributed to by divergent samples and various measurements for primary carer and outcomes.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…Yet while traditional practices exclude married daughters from the filial discourse surrounding their own parents, they often have the most intimate relationship with their parents ( 1 ). Over recent decades, in part due to the One-Child Policy, but also arising from economic development and urbanization, significant changes have occurred in practice with daughters providing more and more support to their natal parents ( 2 – 5 ). Anthropological studies have suggested that the growing importance of parent-daughter relationships is specifically related to female independence and economic empowerment and the increased emphasis on affection and care replacing filial piety in parent-child relationships ( 6 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, there is also evidence showing the son advantage in providing instrumental care and affecting subjective well-being and mental health ( 5 , 22 ). Cong and Silverstein ( 23 ) found a stronger positive wellbeing impact of care provided by daughters-in-law (son's family) than by daughters in rural Anhui, conditional on cultural prescribed expectation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Son or Daughter Care in Relation to Self-Reported Health Outcomes for Older Adults in China

Zhang

Harper

2022

Front. Public Health

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ObjectivesParental care in China is traditionally provided by sons. In recent decades—partly due to the One-Child Policy but also economic development and urbanization—significant changes have occurred with more and more parents receiving care from daughters. We investigate the disparities in outcomes of eldercare provided by son(s) and daughter(s).MethodsOur study compares the self-reported health (SRH) status of parents who receive eldercare from daughters and sons in China, analyzing the harmonized 2013, 2015, and 2018 waves of CHARLS with random-effects logistic estimates.ResultsOur results show that the SRH status of parents who receive care from their sons is greater than those cared for by their daughters. This disparity is greater in rural areas, for mothers, and poorer families.DiscussionThe One-Child Policy was more effective in urban areas, reducing both the availability of sons and cultural son preference. Higher levels of education received by girls in urban settings increases their employability and thus their ability to materially care for their parents. However, traditional norms and gender differences in social economic statuses still persist in rural areas, leading to higher SRH status of those cared for by sons, especially amongst those who are heavily dependent on their children: mothers or parents with less wealth.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Son or Daughter Care in Relation to Self-Reported Health Outcomes for Older Adults in China

Zhang

Harper

2022

Front. Public Health

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“…This is consistent with the conclusions of a cross-sectional study of Chinese elderly individuals in Singapore [29]. Role theory can be used to explain the gender difference in the widowhood effect and its influence mechanism [39,40]. In traditional marriage, men are primarily financially responsible, while women often play the roles of caregiver and emotional supporter [41].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

The Association between Widowhood and Cognitive Function among Chinese Elderly People: Do Gender and Widowhood Duration Make a Difference?

Xiang

Liu

et al. 2021

Healthcare

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Few studies have examined the effects of widowhood on cognitive function in Chinese elderly individuals. We conducted a longitudinal study to assess the association between widowhood and cognitive function and further explored gender differences in this association and the impact of widowhood duration. The analytical sample consisted of 5872 Chinese elderly people who participated in the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) and were followed up from 2005 to 2014. We used the Chinese version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) to assess cognitive function. Widowhood duration was calculated from the self-reported year at which the spouse passed away. Multilevel growth models were employed to estimate the association between widowhood and cognitive function while adjusting for many demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. Widowhood status was associated with cognitive decline among Chinese elderly individuals after adjusting for covariates (B = −0.440, 95% CI −0.727 to −0.152), and this association was only statistically significant among men (B = −0.722, 95% CI −1.104 to −0.339). Being widowed for 5 years or less (B = −0.606, 95% CI −1.112 to −0.100), 16–20 years (B = −0.937, 95% CI −1.685 to −0.190), and 21+ years (B = −1.401, 95% CI −1.967 to −0.834) predicted worse cognitive function in men, while being widowed for more than 21+ years (B = −0.655, 95% CI −1.186 to −0.124) was associated with cognitive decline in women. More attention should be directed towards widowed men and long-term widowed elderly individuals.

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“…Under this logic, the decline in the number of multigenerational households and the migration of the labor force may be disrupting traditional living arrangements, which may continue to impact the traditional Chinese family care function and elderly well-being. Most studies believe that living arrangements have a significant effect on elderly people’s mental health [ 28 ], mortality risk [ 29 ], and life satisfaction [ 30 ]. Where traditional culture is more prevalent, older adults are more likely to live with adult or married sons in China [ 31 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Does Family Intergenerational Relationships Affect the Life Satisfaction of Middle-Aged and Elderly Parents in Urban Only-Child Families in Chengdu, China

Zeng

Yang

Man

2022

IJERPH

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Over the past 40 years, the implementation of the family planning policy in China has led to the creation of many only-child families. In the process of modernization and urbanization, it is critical to focus on the intergenerational relationships in only-child families and their associational mechanism on the life satisfaction of middle-aged and elderly parents, which has crucial implications for them staying active and healthy aging. Using the survey data from Chengdu, China, this study analyzed the characteristics of only-child parents’ life satisfaction and family intergenerational relationships, and explored the associational mechanism of family intergenerational relationships on only-child parents’ life satisfaction in urban families, as well as the possible moderating role of gender. The results indicate that there are gender differences in the life satisfaction of only-child parents in urban families, and men are more satisfied than women. Moreover, parents of sons and daughters differ in life satisfaction from the dual-gender perspective. Parents of daughters are likely to have higher life satisfaction, especially mothers. The only-child families have not moved toward nucleation in urban families, and intergenerational members maintain close contact and provide frequent mutual support to achieve individual and family development. There are significant gender differences in structural, associational, affectual, and functional solidarity among only-child. This study confirms that there are differences in the associational mechanism of family intergenerational relationships on life satisfaction in different dimensions. Affectual solidarity is the most influential factor of life satisfaction. In terms of normative and consensual solidarity, gender plays a moderating role. For men, normative and consensual solidarity is beneficial for improving life satisfaction, but it has an insignificant effect on women. The effects of structural solidarity, association solidarity, and functional solidarity are not significant.

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Widowhood and mortality risk of older people in rural China: do gender and living arrangement make a difference?

Cited by 13 publications

References 55 publications

Son or Daughter Care in Relation to Self-Reported Health Outcomes for Older Adults in China

Son or Daughter Care in Relation to Self-Reported Health Outcomes for Older Adults in China

The Association between Widowhood and Cognitive Function among Chinese Elderly People: Do Gender and Widowhood Duration Make a Difference?

How Does Family Intergenerational Relationships Affect the Life Satisfaction of Middle-Aged and Elderly Parents in Urban Only-Child Families in Chengdu, China

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