Interrupted education and functional limitations among the People's Republic of China (PRC) cohorts

This study explored how interrupted education during the Cultural Revolution affects functional limitations in later life.

Data came from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) 2011-2018. Three cohorts were included: the People's Republic of China (PRC) cohort (born from 1945 to 1954), the pre-PRC cohort (born from 1910 to 1944) and the late-PRC cohort (born from 1955 to 1964). A logit model was used to examine the association between family background and policy-related interrupted education. Mixed-effects negative binomial regression models with random intercepts were applied to estimate the impacts on functional limitations. All analyses were stratified by cohort, and slope differences were tested.

The PRC cohort had a higher proportion of policy-related interrupted education and a lower proportion of college education compared to the pre-PRC and late-PRC cohorts. Higher educational attainment was associated with lower levels of functional limitations in later life across all cohorts. Policy-related interrupted education was associated with higher levels of functional limitations for the PRC cohort. Parental Communist Party membership was not associated with lower odds of policy-related interrupted education, but was associated with higher levels of functional limitations for the PRC cohort (IRR=1.125, p<0.05).

The Cultural Revolution had different impacts on educational attainment and later-life functional limitations across cohorts. The PRC cohort experienced the most negative long-term impacts of disrupted education.