Abstract
IntroductionThe living arrangements among the older population form a basic pointer to the care and support of older adults in India, and living with extended kin is clearly differentiated from living separately. This paper attempts to understand the associations between socio-economic and health-related variables with preference for the separate living among older adults in India.Materials and methodsUsing data from Building Knowledge Base on Population Ageing in India (BKPAI), we employed bivariate and probit regressions on a sample of 9540 older adults to fulfil the study objective.ResultsNearly 21% of older adults were living alone/with a spouse. Additionally, those older adults who lived alone/with spouse had specific reasons, i.e. about 14.6% reported that they had no children, 47.3% of older adults had their children away and 15.9% of older adults reported a family conflict. Availability of children is consistently found to be negatively associated with the preference of separate living. Besides, better self-rated health, independence in daily activities, and facing any type of violence were the strongest predictors of preference for separate living. In addition, the background characteristics, including age, sex, education, religion, and ethnicity, were found as significant predictors of living arrangement preference. Preference for co-residential arrangements emerges among older persons who have a feeling of importance within their family.ConclusionPhysical proximity to kin and health conditions, in addition to economic conditions, substantially determine the swing towards separate living among older adults in India. This suggests that attention has to be paid to the demand for specialized care and health services among older adults living separately.
Highlights
The living arrangements among the older population form a basic pointer to the care and support of older adults in India, and living with extended kin is clearly differentiated from living separately
Better self-rated health, independence in daily activities, and facing any type of violence were the strongest predictors of preference for separate living
Another study found that marital status was a significant predictor of living alone, where widowed were more likely to live alone compared to their married counterparts [47]. In agreement with such studies, the results of the present study show that the older adults who are currently in a marital union prefer separate living suggesting that marital status is a significant factor in determining living arrangement choices among both men and women alike
Summary
Using data from Building Knowledge Base on Population Ageing in India (BKPAI), we employed bivariate and probit regressions on a sample of 9540 older adults to fulfil the study objective. The present research used data from Building Knowledge Base on Population Ageing in India (BKPAI), which was a national level survey and was conducted in 2011 across seven states of India [29]. Seven major regionally representative states, with the highest 60+ years population than the national average, were selected for the survey. This survey was carried out on a representative sample in the Northern, Western, Eastern, And Southern parts of India following a random sampling process [29]. A sample size of 9540 older adults residing in seven states aged 60+ years was selected
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