Dependency Status and Happiness With Old Age on Java

Abstract

Using data from a survey of elderly persons on Java, we investigate the prevalence of dependency states (functional, economic, and residential) and the implications of dependency status for happiness with old age. Whereas being dependent is common in the later years, many older persons still have dependents. Dependency on kin is not a negative situation in this context, but having economic dependents appears to be burdensome. Gender, being able to provide an inheritance, and rural-urban residence moderate the relationship between dependency status and happiness. © 1994 by The Gerontological Society of America.