Gender-Specific Associations between Late-Life Disability and Socioeconomic Status: Findings from the International Mobility and Aging Study (IMIAS)

Abstract

Disability is a dynamic process and can be influenced by a sociocultural environment. This study aimed to determine whether the associations between socioeconomic status and late-life disability differ by gender in a multi-sociocultural sample from different countries. A cross-sectional study was developed with 1362 older adults from The International Mobility in Aging Study. Late-life disability was measured through the disability component of the Late-Life Function Disability Instrument. Level of education, income sufficiency and lifelong occupation were used as indicators of SES. The results indicated that a low education level β = −3.11 [95% CI −4.70; −1.53] and manual occupation β = −1.79 [95% −3.40; −0.18] were associated with frequency decrease for men, while insufficient income β = −3.55 [95% CI −5.57; −1.52] and manual occupation β = −2.25 [95% CI −3.89; −0.61] played a negative role in frequency for women. For both men β = −2.39 [95% −4.68; −0.10] and women β = −3.39 [95% −5.77; −1.02], insufficient income was the only factor associated with greater perceived limitation during life tasks. This study suggested that men and women had different late-life disability experiences. For men, occupation and education were associated with a decrease in the frequency of participation, while for women this was associated with income and occupation. Income was associated with perceived limitation during daily life tasks for both genders.