Exploring Korean Middle-and Old-Aged Citizens’ Subjective Health and Quality of Life

Abstract

The goal of this research is to investigate the determinants of subjective health and quality of life with a particular focus on middle-and old-aged citizens. Subjective health is an antecedent of quality of life. For both attributes, travel frequency, economic activity, and cultural activity frequency are the main explanatory variables. Korean middle-and old-aged citizen research panel data was used to derive the data; the study periods are 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016. The present work used an econometric method to analyze this panel data. The results show that subjective health positively affects quality of life; meanwhile, economic activity positively affects both subjective health and quality of life. It is also found that cultural activity and travel exert inverted U-shape impacts on subjective health and quality of life. The control variables in this research were gender, body mass index, birth year, and personal assets. These results could help guide policy makers in designing more efficient welfare policies for middle-and old-aged citizens.