Poverty, Perceived Economic Strain and Psychological Distress among Older Thai Adults

Introduction Indeed, poverty among older persons is still a major problem in many developing countries as well as several developed ones (Glasgow, 1993). It has been widely documented that poverty is negatively associated with health and well-being (Chan et al., 2002; Zimmer, 2008). Hence, the older persons living in poverty may be vulnerable to economic hardships and health problems. Prior studies conducted in the United States have found that rates of transition into poverty in old age are higher for women, ethnic minorities, those with lower educational attainments, the disabled, widows and widowers, those living alone, and those living in rural areas (Angel et al., 2003; Glasgow, 1993). However, there have been only a few studies which explored the impacts of poverty on health and well-being in older persons, particularly in the poor countries (Zimmer, 2008). Poverty is significantly related to subjective measures of economic conditions such as perceptions of income adequacy or economic strain (Malmgren et al., 1996). Much evidence has shown that financial strain influences psychological health and well-being of the elderly (Chou & Chi, 2000). The work by Cheng and colleague (Cheng et al., 2002) indicated that perceived financial sufficiency is the strongest predictor of elderly mental health. The 3-year longitudinal study of Chou and Chi (2002) also found that financial strain is the strongest predictor of life satisfaction among Chinese elderly in Hong Kong. In the 18-month longitudinal study of American elders, Krause (1987) reported that financial strain at baseline brought to bear a significant impact on depression at follow up. Chi and Chou (1999) similarly found that financial strain influenced depression for both older men and women. In Thai society, family members, particularly children, play a major role in providing resources and assistances to older parents. At present, family structure has become predominantly nuclear, co-residence with children has declined and living alone or only with a spouse has increased (Knodel & Chayovan, 2009). However, children are still the most common source of income for older Thais (Zimmer & Amornsirisomboon, 2001). Knodel and Chayovan (2009) reported that 52.3 percent of the elderly income come from their children, and 28.9 percent come from their paid work. Financial dependence on children increases for the older persons aged 70 years and over and for female elderly, whereas income from work decreases with age because labor force participation and income generating activity decline with increased age. Amid social changes and …