Demographic Variation in Health Problem-Related Limitations in Life Across 22 Countries: A Cross-National Analysis
Listed in
This article is not in any list yet, why not save it to one of your lists.Abstract
Background: Health limitations, defined as problems in life that limit an individual from activities of daily living, have been associated with human flourishing, globally. However, risk factors for health problems leading to functional limitations have not been investigated across different cultures and countries. Chronic disease, musculoskeletal, neurological, physical, and cognitive limitations, back pain, and infectious diseases all contribute to the impacts of health problems on daily functioning.Methods: The Global Flourishing Study is a 5-year longitudinal study of human flourishing among 200,000 individuals across 22 countries. The purpose of this analysis was to assess the regional and demographic variation of health limitations in life associated with health problems in wave 1 of the Global Flourishing Study. The study explored the distributions and descriptive statistics of key demographic features (age, gender, marital status, employment, religious service attendance, education, immigration status) across our international sample from 22 countries. The following hypotheses were tested: 1) The mean levels of health limitations will vary meaningfully across different countries, and 2) Health limitations will exhibit variations across different demographic categories such as age, gender, marital status, employment, religious service attendance, education, and immigration status. These differences across demographic categories will vary by country.Results: Results show that older age and lower education are associated with an increased likelihood of health limitations. Being widowed and retired are also associated with increased proportions of having a health limitation.Conclusions: Understanding key demographic associations of such health problems and daily functioning will lead to more effective interventions and programs increasing longer-term well-being of those with such limiting health problems.
