Social Indicators Research

, Volume 123, Issue 2, pp 411–429 | Cite as

Duration and Accumulation of Disadvantages in Old Age

Article
First Online:
Accepted:

Abstract

The probability of experiencing simultaneous disadvantages in more than one life domain seems to be higher for the oldest old people than younger age groups. However, the experience of coexisting disadvantages among older adults is relatively underexplored. We set out to analyse whether coexisting disadvantages among older people are long-lasting or temporary, and whether there are patterns of an accumulation of disadvantages in old age or not. We used nationally representative, longitudinal data between 1991 and 2011. Respondents were born between 1916 and 1934. The following disadvantages were included: lack of social resources, lack of political resources, lack of financial resources, psychological health problems, physical health problems and mobility limitations. Results suggest differing experiences of disadvantage in old age. We found that reporting coexisting disadvantages in 1991 increased the probability of reporting coexisting disadvantages in 2011, but the correlation was moderate. This indicates that for some people, coexisting disadvantages in old age is relatively stable, while for others it is a temporary experience. Reporting one disadvantage in 1991 also increased the probability of reporting coexisting disadvantages in 2011, suggesting a pattern of accumulation of disadvantages. Again, this pattern may not be generalised to all people. To a large extent the observed accumulation of disadvantages in old age seemed to be driven by physical health deterioration and mobility limitations.

Keywords

Oldest old Ageing Disadvantage Health Longitudinal analysis 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

Notes

Acknowledgments

Josephine Heap gratefully acknowledges financial support from the Department of Social Work at Stockholm University, as well as from the Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare: Grant 2007-1947. Stefan Fors gratefully acknowledges financial support from Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare: Grant 2012-0761. We would like to thank Carin Lennartsson and Lena Dahlberg for valuable comments on earlier drafts.

References

  1. Allardt, E. (1993). Having, loving, being: An alternative to the swedish model of welfare research. In M. Nussbaum & A. Sen (Eds.), The quality of life (pp. 88–94). Oxford: Clarendon Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  2. Arber, S. (2004). Gender, marital status, and ageing: Linking material, health and social resources. Journal of Aging Studies, 18, 91–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  3. Arber, S., & Ginn, J. (2004). Ageing and Gender: Diversity and Change. Social Trends, 34, 1–14.Google Scholar
  4. Ayis, S., Paul, C., & Ebrahim, S. (2010). Psychological disorders in old age. Better identification for better treatment. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 26, 39–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  5. Barnes, M., Blom, A., Cox, K., Lessof, C., & Walker, A. (2006). The social exclusion of older people: Evidence from the first wave of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA).Final Report. London: Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.Google Scholar
  6. Becker, E., & Boreham, R. (2009). Understanding the risks of social exclusion across the life course: Older age. London: Cabinet Office, Social Exclusion Task Force.Google Scholar
  7. Blazer, D. G. (2003). Depression in late life: Review and commentary. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, 58A(3), 249–265.Google Scholar
  8. Burchardt, T., Le Grand, J., & Piachaud, D. (2002). Degrees of exclusion: Developing a dynamic, multidimensional measure. In J. Hills, J. Le Grand & D. Piachaud (Eds.), Understanding social exclusion (pp. 30–43). New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
  9. Cox, D. R. (2001). Another comment on the role of statistical methods. British Medical Journal, 322, 231.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  10. Dannefer, D. (2003). Cumulative advantage/disadvantage and the life course: Cross-fertilizing age and social science theory. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 58B(6), S327–S337.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  11. Esping-Andersen, G. (2000). Social Indicators and Welfare Monitoring. Social Policy and Development Programme. Paper Number 2. Geneva: United Nations Research Institute for Social Development.Google Scholar
  12. Esping-Andersen, G. (2002). Towards the good society, once again? In G. Esping-Andersen (Ed.), Why we need a new welfare state (pp. 1–25). Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  13. Ferraro, K. F., & Kelley-Moore, J. A. (2003). Cumulative disadvantage and health: Long-term consequences of obesity? American Sociological Review, 68(5), 707–729.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  14. Ferraro, K. F., Pylypiv Shippee, T., & Schafer, M. H. (2009). Cumulative inequality theory for research on aging and the life course. In V. Bengtson, D. Gans, N. Putney & M. Silverstein (Eds.), Handbook of theories of aging (pp. 413–433). New York: Springer.Google Scholar
  15. Fritzell, J., & Lundberg, O. (Eds.). (2007). Health inequalities and welfare resources. Continuity and change in Sweden. Bristol: Policy Press.Google Scholar
  16. Grundy, E., & Slogett, A. (2003). Health inequalities in the older population: The role of personal capital, social resources and socio-economic circumstances. Social Science and Medicine, 56, 935–947.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  17. Halleröd, B. (2009). Ill, worried or worried sick? Inter-relationships among indicators of wellbeing among older people in Sweden. Ageing & Society, 29(4), 563–584.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  18. Halleröd, B., & Bask, M. (2008). Accumulation of welfare problems in a longitudinal perspective. Social Indicators Research, 88, 311–327.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  19. Halleröd, B., & Seldén, D. (2013). The multi-dimensional characteristics of wellbeing: How different aspects of wellbeing interact and do not interact with each other. Social Indicators Research, 113, 807–825.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  20. Heap, J., Lennartsson, C., & Thorslund, M. (2013). Coexisting disadvantages across the adult age span: A comparison of older and younger age groups in the Swedish welfare state. International Journal of Social Welfare, 22, 130–140.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  21. Hegeman, J. M., Kok, R. M., van der Mast, R. C., & Giltay, E. J. (2012). Phenomenology of depression in older compared with younger adults: Meta analysis. British Journal of Psychiatry, 200, 275–281.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  22. Johansson, S. (1970). Om levnadsnivåundersökningen [About the level of living survey]. Stockholm: Allmänna förlaget.Google Scholar
  23. Kelfve, S., Thorslund, M., & Lennartsson, C. (2013). Sampling and non-response bias on health-outcomes in surveys of the oldest old. European Journal of Ageing, 10(3), 237–245.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  24. Korpi, T., Nelson, K., & Stenberg, S. Å. (2007). The accumulation of social problems 1974–2000 (Chapter 4). International Journal of Social Welfare, 16, S91–S104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  25. Lennartsson, C., Agahi, N., Hols-Salén, L., Kelfve, S., Kåreholt, I., Lundberg, O., et al. (2014). Data resource profile: The Swedish Panel Study of Living Conditions of the Oldest Old (SWEOLD). International Journal of Epidemiology, 43(3), 731–738.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  26. Mirowsky, J., & Ross, C. E. (2003). Education, social status and health. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.Google Scholar
  27. Mood, C. (2010). Logistic regression: Why we cannot do what we think we can do, and what we can do about it. European Sociological Review, 26(1), 67–82.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  28. Muffels, R., & Fouarge, D. (2004). The role of European welfare states in explaining resources deprivation. Social Indicators Research, 68, 299–330.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  29. National Board of Health and Welfare. (2008). Äldres psykiska ohälsa—en fördjupad lägesrapport om förekomst, verksamheter och insatser [Psychological health problems among older adults: a report on prevalences and interventions]. Stockholm: National Board of Health and Welfare.Google Scholar
  30. O’Rand, A. (1996). The cumulative stratification of the life course. In R. H. Binstock & L. K. George (Eds.), Handbook of aging and the social sciences (pp. 188–207). San Diego: Academic Press.Google Scholar
  31. Östberg, V., & Lennartsson, C. (2007). Getting by with a little help: The importance of various types of social support for health problems. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 35, 197–204.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  32. Scharf, T. (2009). Too tight to mention: Unequal income in older age. In P. Cann & M. Dean (Eds.), Unequal ageing. The untold story of exclusion in old age (pp. 25–52). Bristol: Policy Press.Google Scholar
  33. Schöllgen, I., Huxhold, O., & Tesch-Römer, C. (2010). Socioeconomic status and health in the second half of life: Findings from the German Ageing Study. European Journal of Ageing, 7, 17–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  34. Stiglitz, J. E., Sen, A., & Fitoussi, J. P. (2009). Report by the commission on the measurement of economic performance and social progress. http://www.stiglitz-sen-fitoussi.fr/documents/rapport_anglais.pdf. Accessed January 31 2014.
  35. Tham, H. (1994). Ökar marginaliseringen i Sverige? [Is marginalisation on the rise in Sweden?] In J. Fritzell & O. Lundberg (Eds.), Vardagens villkor. Levnadsförhållanden i Sverige under tre decennier [The everyady conditions of life: Living conditions in Sweden over three decades] (pp. 215–234). Stockholm: Bromberg.Google Scholar
  36. Tsakloglou, P., & Papadopoulos, F. (2002). Aggregate level and determining factors of social exclusion in twelve European countries. Journal of European Social Policy, 12(3), 211–225.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  37. Vanderhorst, R. K., & McLaren, S. (2005). Social relationships as predictors of depression and suicidal ideation in older adults. Aging & Mental Health, 9(6), 517–525.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  38. Whelan, C. T., & Maître, B. (2007). Levels and Patterns of Material Deprivation in Ireland: After the’Celtic Tiger’. European Sociological Review, 23(2), 139–154.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  39. Whelan, C. T., & Maître, B. (2008). The life cycle perspective on social inclusion in Ireland: An Analysis of EU-SILC. Research Series number 3. Dublin: The Economic and Social Research Institute.Google Scholar
  40. Wilson, K. C., Chen, R., Taylor, S., McCracken, C. F., & Copeland, J. R. (1999). Socio-economic deprivation and the prevalence and prediction of depression in older community residents. The MRC-ALPHA Study. British Journal of Psychiatry, 175, 549–553.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  41. Wolitzky-Taylor, K. B., Castriotta, N., Lenze, E. J., Stanley, M. A., & Craske, M. G. (2010). Anxiety disorders in older adults: A comprehensive review. Depression and Anxiety, 27, 190–211.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  42. Yasamy, M. T., Dua, T., Harper, M., & Saxena, S. (2013). Mental health of older adults, addressing a growing concern. World Health Organization, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse. http://www.who.int/mental_health/world-mental-health-day/WHO_paper_wmhd_2013.pdf. Accessed March 14 2014.

Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Social WorkStockholm UniversityStockholmSweden
  2. 2.Aging Research CenterKarolinska Institutet and Stockholm UniversityStockholmSweden

Personalised recommendations