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Educational attainment and transitions in functional status among older Taiwanese

  • Labor Force, Mortality, and Aging in Asia
  • Published:
Demography

Abstract

Despite considerable research examining the influence of socioeconomic status on health, few studies have considered this relationship as it pertains to older adults in non-Western societies. We attempt to ascertain the influence of education on changes in physical functioning in a rapidly developing country. Data come from the 1989 Survey of Health and Living Status of the Elderly in Taiwan and a follow-up interview in 1993 (N = 4,049, age = 60+). Individuals are conceptualized to be in a state of functional independence or functional limitation at the time of origin, based on their ability to perform three physical functioning tasks. The outcome at the follow-up interview is categorized as functionally independent, limited, or dead, allowing for six probabilities, one from each state of origin to each outcome. These are calculated using a multinomial logit model, controlling for other factors often thought to be associated with health transitions. High levels of educational attainment result in a decreased incidence of functional limitation for those originating in a state of independence. Contrary to expectations, however, education has little influence on those who originate functionally limited. Thus, higher education plays a substantial role in primary prevention of morbidity, delaying the onset of disability, but other factors are more important once limitations begin. We speculate on the reasons behind these findings, including that the results may be culturally dependent.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, University of Nevada, 4505 Maryland Parkway, Box 455033, 89154, Las Vegas, NV

    Zachary Zimmer

  2. Reed Army Medical Center, University of Michigan, Michigan, USA

    Xian Liu

  3. Population Studies Center, University of Michigan, Michigan, USA

    Albert Hermalin

  4. Taiwan Provincial Institute of Family Planning, Taichung, Taiwan

    Yi-Li Chuang

Authors
  1. Zachary Zimmer
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  2. Xian Liu
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  3. Albert Hermalin
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  4. Yi-Li Chuang
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Correspondence to Zachary Zimmer.

Additional information

This research was conducted as part of “The Study of Rapid Demographic Change and the Welfare of the Elderly” sponsored by the U.S. National Institute on Aging (Grant AG07637). Organizations collaborating in this research include the Taiwan Provincial Institute of Family Planning and the University of Michigan. An early version of this paper was presented at the 1996 annual meeting of the Population Association of America, New Orleans.

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Zimmer, Z., Liu, X., Hermalin, A. et al. Educational attainment and transitions in functional status among older Taiwanese. Demography 35, 361–375 (1998). https://doi.org/10.2307/3004043

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