Social Participation of the Elders in Europe: The Influence of Individual and Contextual Variables

Abstract

This study analyzes the social participation of older people based on individual and contextual variables. For this purpose the data of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) in particular waves 1, 2 and 4 have been used. A four-level model with fixed and random effects was carried out. The model obtained shows the effect of individual variables: a greater participation in more recent waves, in ages between 60-70 years and the effect of variables such as cognitive functioning, years of education and health self-perception. But significant differences were also found in participation in contextual variables and between countries. These results are important for public policy managers, who must take into account not only individual variables, but also contextual variables, which explain the differences in the participation rate of the elderly.