Family-Work Trajectories and Inequalities in Later-life Cognition in China: Evidence from CHARLS

Jiawei Wu, Shanghai University
Guillaume Marois, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

A growing body of literature has shown that variations in individuals' partnership, fertility, and employment histories over the life course are associated with inequalities in later-life cognition, but evidence from lower- and middle-income countries that comprehensively examines the intersections/clusters of these domains remains scarce. In this study, drawing on data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) life-history wave (2014) and regular waves (2011, 2013, 2015, 2018, 2020), our research objective is three-fold. First, using sequence analysis, we expect to identify a statistically justifiable finite class of family-work trajectories attuned to China's unique social-economic history (e.g., one-child policy, hukou (household registration) system and rural-urban disparities, segregation across employment sectors, etc.). Second, estimating multivariate linear regression models, we will explore how various family-work trajectories are associated with inequalities in older adults' cognitive function (measured by episodic memory and mental status score) cross-sectionally in 2011. Third, fitting growth curve models, we seek to assess whether these inequalities widen or narrow among respondents belonging to various family-work trajectories over a 9-year follow-up period. This study will add to the literature on the life-course determinants of later-life health inequalities.

Keywords: Older Adults and Intergenerational Relations, Population Ageing, Longitudinal studies , Families, Unions and Households

See extended abstract.