Late life disability and experienced wellbeing: Are economic resources a buffer?

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Sociology of Health and Illness
• Public Health

Background:

• Disablement in later life is associated with reduced wellbeing.
• The buffering effect of material resources on this relationship remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine how economic resources, specifically income and wealth, buffer the negative effects of disablement on experienced wellbeing in older adults.
• To compare the buffering capacity of income versus assets.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of experienced wellbeing data from time diary interviews with adults aged 60 and older (N=1607) from the Disability and Use of Time Supplement to the Panel Study of Income Dynamics.
• Inclusion of measures for activity limitations, impairment severity, duration of limiting conditions, and work limitation history.
• Estimation of multi-level regression models assessing pre-tax income and net worth quartiles, with calculations of marginal effects of disability on wellbeing across economic resource levels.

Main Results:

• Impairment severity is linked to lower experienced wellbeing, even after controlling for covariates.
• Income acts as a buffer against the negative wellbeing impacts of impairment severity, particularly for individuals in middle-income quartiles.
• Income demonstrated a more substantial buffering effect than assets.

Conclusions:

• Economic resources, especially income, play a crucial role in mitigating the adverse effects of physical impairments on the wellbeing of older adults.
• Further research is needed to elucidate the specific mechanisms of income buffering and identify accommodations that support wellbeing across different economic strata.
• Findings suggest potential for financial interventions to improve quality of life for aging populations experiencing disability.