Impact of Widowhood and Disability Among Elderly

Abstract

Aging is a natural phenomenon in which widowhood and disability are the major characteristics of concern. The main objective of the chapter is to sift the relationship between widowhood and disability by gender. It examines the factors affecting female elderly with the disability and measures both subjective and objective disabilities. This study is evidenced from the Kerala Ageing Survey (KAS), 2013, with a sample of 7668 elderly in which 58% are females. Three major physical disabilities, namely vision, hearing, and walking, and mental disabilities, such as cognitive impairment and depression, are to be analyzed through the data. Before that, disability trends and prevalence of both India and Kerala by age and sex are closely examined through census figures. It is revealed that elderly women are at risk of many factors compared to their male counterparts. They are vulnerable to multiple disabilities. The prevalence of disability is more among elderly females after the age of 70. The main physical problem of elderly is vision followed by movement and hearing impairment.