Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-04T20:27:42.217Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Family size and old-age wellbeing: effects of the fertility transition in Mexico

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 October 2015

CARLOS DÍAZ-VENEGAS ,
JOSEPH L. SÁENZ  and
REBECA WONG
CARLOS DÍAZ-VENEGAS*
Affiliation:
Rehabilitation Sciences Academic Division and Research Center, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, USA.
JOSEPH L. SÁENZ
Affiliation:
Preventive Medicine and Community Health, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, USA.
REBECA WONG
Affiliation:
Sealy Center on Aging, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, USA.
*
Address for correspondence: Carlos Díaz-Venegas, Konrad-Zuse-Str. 1, Rostock, Germany, 18057. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The present study aims to determine how family size affects psycho-social, economic and health wellbeing in old age differently across two cohorts with declining fertility. The data are from the 2012 Mexican Health and Ageing Study (MHAS) including respondents aged 50+ (N = 13,102). Poisson (standard and zero-inflated) and logistic regressions are used to model determinants of wellbeing in old age: psycho-social (depressive symptoms), economic (consumer durables and insurance) and health (chronic conditions). In the younger cohort, having fewer children is associated with fewer depressive symptoms and chronic conditions, and better economic wellbeing. For the older cohort, having fewer children is associated with lower economic wellbeing and higher odds of being uninsured. Lower fertility benefited the younger cohort (born after 1937), whereas the older cohort (born in 1937 or earlier) benefited from lower fertility only in chronic conditions. Further research is needed to continue exploring the old-age effects of the fertility transition.

Keywords

fertility transitionMexicoelderly wellbeingnumber of childrenMHAS
Type
Articles
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 37 , Issue 3 , March 2017 , pp. 495 - 516
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2015 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adhikari, R. 2010. Demographic, socio-economic, and cultural factors affecting fertility differentials in Nepal. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 10, 19, 1–11.Google Scholar
Aguilar-García, J. 2006. La seguridad social y las reformas a los sistemas de pensiones en México. Estudios Políticos, Octava Época, 8, 8, 133–70.Google Scholar
Aiken, A. R. A., Angel, J. L. and Miles, T. P. 2012. Pregnancy as a risk factor for ambulatory limitation in later life. American Journal of Public Health, 102, 12, 2330–5.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Attias-Donfut, C. 2001. The dynamics of elderly support: the transmission of solidarity patterns between generations. Zeitschrift für Gerontologie und Geriatrie, 34, 1, 9–15.Google Scholar
Becker, G. S. 1993. Human Capital: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis, with Special Reference to Education. Third edition, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.Google Scholar
Beyene, Y., Becker, G. and Mayen, N. 2002. Perception of aging and sense of well-being among Latino elderly. Journal of Cross-cultural Gerontology, 17, 2, 155–72.Google Scholar
Biddlecom, A., Chayovan, N. and Ofstedal, M. B. 2002. Intergenerational support and transfers. In Hermalin, A. I. (ed.), The Well-being of the Elderly in Asia: A Four-country Comparative Study. The University of Michigan Press, 185–230.Google Scholar
Bollen, K. A., Glanville, J. L. and Stecklov, G. 2001. Socioeconomic status and class in studies of fertility and health in developing countries. Annual Review of Sociology, 27, 153–85.Google Scholar
Bollen, K. A., Glanville, J. L. and Stecklov, G. 2002. Economic status proxies in studies of fertility in developing countries: does the measure matter? Population Studies, 56, 1, 81–96.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bongaarts, J. and Zimmer, Z. 2002. Living arrangements of older adults in the developing world: an analysis of demographic and health survey household surveys. Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 57B, 3, S145–57.Google Scholar
Brea, J. A. 2003. Population Dynamics of Latin America. Population Bulletin 58, Washington, DC: Population Reference Bureau.Google Scholar
Cabrera, G. 1994. Demographic dynamics and development: the role of population policy in Mexico. In Finkle, J. L. and McIntosh, A. (eds), The New Politics of Population: Conflict and Consensus in Family Planning. Population Council, New York, 105–20.Google Scholar
Cameron, C. A. and Trivedi, P. K. 2010. Microeconometrics Using Stata. Stata Press, College Station, Texas.Google Scholar
Chen, X. and Silverstein, M. 2000. Intergenerational social support and the psychological well-being of older parents in China. Research on Aging, 22, 1, 43–65.Google Scholar
Consejo Nacional de Población 1983. Encuesta Nacional Demográfica, 1982. CONAPO, Mexico City.Google Scholar
Consejo Nacional de Población 2011. Indicadores Demográficos Básicos Nacionales 1990–2010. Available online at http://www.conapo.gob.mx/es/CONAPO/Indicadores_Demograficos_Basicos_1990-2010. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
De Vos, S. 1990. Extended family living among older people in six Latin American countries. Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 45B, 3, S87–94.Google Scholar
Dhawan-Biswal, U. 2002. Consumption and income inequality: the case of Atlantic Canada from 1969–1996. Canadian Public Policy/Analyse de Politiques, 28, 4, 513–37.Google Scholar
Dior, U. P., Hochner, H., Friedlander, Y., Calderon-Margalit, R., Jaffe, D., Burger, A., Avgil, M., Manor, O. and Elchalal, U. 2013. Association between number of children and mortality of mothers: results of a 37-year follow-up study. Annals of Epidemiology, 23, 1, 13–18.Google Scholar
Doblhammer, G. 2000. Reproductive history and mortality later in life: a comparative study of England and Wales and Austria. Population Studies, 54, 2, 169–76.Google Scholar
Felton, B. J. and Berry, C. A. 1992. Do the sources of the urban elderly's social support determine its psychological consequences? Psychology and Aging, 7, 1, 89–97.Google Scholar
Giedion, Ú., Villar, M. and Ávila, A. 2010. Los Sistemas de Salud en Latinoamérica y el Papel del Seguro Privado. F. MAPFRE, Madrid.Google Scholar
Glenn, N. D. (ed.) 2005. Cohort Analysis. Second edition, Sage, Thousand Oaks, California.Google Scholar
González-Vázquez, T., Bonilla-Fernández, P., Jaúregui-Ortiz, B., Yamanis, T. J. and Salgado de Snyder, V. N. 2007. Well-being and family support among elderly rural Mexicans in the context of migration to the United States. Journal of Aging and Health, 19, 2, 334–55.Google Scholar
Grundy, E. and Henretta, J. C. 2006. Between elderly parents and adult children: a new look at the intergenerational care provided by the ‘sandwich generation’. Ageing & Society, 26, 5, 707–22.Google Scholar
Grundy, E. and Holt, G. 2000. Adult life experiences and health in early old age in Great Britain. Social Science and Medicine, 51, 7, 1061–74.Google Scholar
Grundy, E. and Tomassini, C. 2005. Fertility history and health in later life: a record linkage study in England and Wales. Social Science and Medicine, 61, 1, 217–28.Google Scholar
Huinink, J. and Kohli, M. 2014. A life-course approach to fertility. Demographic Research, 30, 45, 1293–326.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía 2007. Mujeres y Hombres en México, 2007. INEGI, Aguascalientes, Mexico.Google Scholar
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía 2009. Tasa Específica de Fecundidad, Global de Fecundidad y Bruta de Reproducción: Años Seleccionados de 1930 a 2005. Sistema para la Consulta de las Estadísticas Históricas de México, 2009. Available online at http://dgcnesyp.inegi.org.mx/cgi-win/ehm.exe/CI010090. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía 2011. Población Total Según Tamaño de Localidad, 1900 a 2010. Población: Volumen y Crecimiento. Available online at http://www.inegi.org.mx/est/contenidos/proyectos/graficas_temas/epobla05.htm?s=estandc=17501. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
Juárez, F., Singh, S., García, S. G. and Díaz-Olavarrieta, C. 2009. Estimaciones del aborto inducido en México: ¿Qué ha cambiado entre 1990 y 2006? Perspectivas Internacionales en Salud Sexual y Reproductiva, Número Especial de 2009, 4–14.Google Scholar
Kington, R., Lillard, L. and Rogowski, J. 1997. Reproductive history, socioeconomic status, and self-reported health status of women aged 50 years or older. American Journal of Public Health, 87, 1, 33–7.Google Scholar
Koropeckyj-Cox, T., Pienta, A. M. and Brown, T. H. 2007. Women of the 1950s and the ‘normative’ life course: the implications of childlessness, fertility timing, and marital status for psychological well-being in late midlife. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 64, 7, 299–330.Google Scholar
Lee, G. R., Netzer, J. K. and Coward, R. T. 1995. Depression among older parents: the role of intergenerational exchange. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 57, 3, 823–33.Google Scholar
Lee, R. and Mason, A. 2011. Population ageing, intergenerational transfers, and economic growth: Asia in a global context. Paper presented at the Policy Research and Data Needs to Meet the Challenges and Opportunities of Population Aging in Asia, 14–15 March, New Delhi.Google Scholar
Licea de Arenas, J., Arenas, M. and Valles, J. 2002. La píldora anticonceptiva en América Latina y el Caribe. Estudio bibliométrico. Anales de Documentación, 5, 1, 213–22.Google Scholar
Lindenberg, S. 2001. Intrinsic motivation in a new light. Kyklos, 54, 2/3, 317–42.Google Scholar
Margolis, R. and Myrskylä, M. 2011. A global perspective on happiness and fertility. Population and Development Review, 37, 1, 29–56.Google Scholar
McLanahan, S. and Adams, J. 1987. Parenthood and psychological well-being. Annual Review of Sociology, 13, 5, 237–57.Google Scholar
Mexican Health and Ageing Study 2001. Data Files and Documentation (Public Use): Wave 1. Available online at http://www.mhasweb.org. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
Mexican Health and Ageing Study 2012. Data Files and Documentation (Public Use): Wave 3. Available online at http://www.mhasweb.org. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
Miranda, A. 2006. Are young cohorts of women delaying first birth in Mexico? Journal of Population Economics, 19, 5, 55–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nauck, B. 2001. Der Wert von Kindern für ihre Eltern. Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie, 53, 3, 407–35.Google Scholar
Nomaguchi, K. M. and Milkie, M. A. 2003. Costs and rewards of children: the effects of becoming a parent on adults’ lives. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 65, 2, 356–74.Google Scholar
Pérez-Brignoli, H. 2010. América Latina en la transición demográfica, 1800–1980. Población y Salud en Mesoamérica, 7, 2.Google Scholar
Radloff, L. S. 1977. The CES-D Scale: a self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1, 3, 385–401.Google Scholar
Reinhardt, J. P., Boerner, K. and Horowitz, A. 2006. Good to have but not to use: differential impact of perceived and received support on well-being. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 23, 1, 117–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Romo-Viramontes, R. and Sánchez-Castillo, M. 2009. El descenso de la fecundidad en México, 1974–2009: a 35 años de la puesta en marcha de la nueva política de población. In CONAPO (ed.), La Situación Demográfica de México 2009. CONAPO, Mexico City, 23–38.Google Scholar
Ruggles, S. and Heggeness, M. 2008. Intergenerational coresidence in developing countries. Population Development Review, 34, 2, 253–81.Google Scholar
Ryan, A. K. and Willits, F. K. 2007. Family ties, physical health, and psychological well-being. Journal of Aging and Health, 19, 6, 907–20.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ryder, N. B. 1965. The cohort as a concept in the study of social change. American Sociological Review, 30, 6, 843–61.Google Scholar
Secretaría de Programación y Presupuesto and Instituto de Investigadores Sociales de la U.N.A.M. (SPP-IISUNAM) 1976. Encuesta Mexicana de Fecundidad 1976. SPP-IISUNAM, Mexico City.Google Scholar
Solé-Auró, A. and Crimmins, E. M. 2014. Who cares? A comparison of informal and formal care provision in Spain, England and the USA. Ageing & Society, 34, 3, 495–517.Google Scholar
StataCorp. 2013. Stata Statistical Software: Release 13. StataCorp., College Station, Texas.Google Scholar
Tuirán, R., Partida, V., Mojarro, O. and Zúñiga, E. 2002. Fertility in Mexico: Trends and Forecast. Available online at http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/completingfertility/RevisedTUIRAN-PARTIDApaper.PDF. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
Umberson, D. 1992. Relationship between adult children and their parents: psychological consequences for both generations. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 54, 3, 664–74.Google Scholar
United Nations 2015. World Population Prospects: The 2015 Revision. United Nations Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, New York. Available online at http://esa.un.org/unpd/wpp/General/GlossaryDemographicTerms.aspx. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
Vuong, Q. H. 1989. Likelihood ratio tests for model selection and non-nested hypotheses. Econometrica, 57, 2, 307–33.Google Scholar
Wong, R. and DeGraff, D. S. 2009. Old-age wealth in Mexico: the role of reproductive, human capital, and employment decisions. Research on Aging, 31, 4, 413–39.Google Scholar
Wong, R. and Higgins, M. 2007. Dynamics of intergenerational assistance in middle- and old-age in Mexico. In Angel, J. L. and Whitfield, K. E. (eds), The Health of Aging Hispanics: The Mexican-origin Population. Springer, New York, 99–120.Google Scholar
Wong, R., Michaels-Obregón, A. and Palloni, A. 2015. Cohort profile: the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS). International Journal of Epidemiology. First published online [Accessed 27 January 2015]. doi:10.1093/ije/dyu263.Google Scholar
Wong, R. and Palloni, A. 2009. Aging in Mexico and Latin America. In Uhlenberg, P. (ed.), International Handbook of Population Aging. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, 231–52.Google Scholar
World Bank 2015. Fertility Rate, Total for Mexico. Archival Economic Data of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (ALFRED). Available online at https://alfred.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/SPDYNTFRTINMEX/. [Accessed on May–June 2014].Google Scholar
Zavala de Cosío, M. E. 1992. Cambios de Fecundidad en México y Políticas de Población. El Colegio de México y Fondo de Cultura Econónomica, Mexico City.Google Scholar
Zavala, M. E. 2014. La transición demográfica en México (1895–2010): ¿Una transición original? In Rabell-Romero, C. (ed.), Los Mexicanos: Un Balance del Cambio Demográfico. Fondo de Cultura Económica, Mexico City, 80–114.Google Scholar
Zúñiga, E., Zubieta, B. and Ayala, C. 2000. Cuadernos de Salud Reproductiva: República Mexicana. Consejo Nacional de Población, Mexico City.Google Scholar
Zunzunegui, M. V., Béland, F. and Otero, A. 2001. Support from children, living arrangements, self-rated health and depressive symptoms of older people in Spain. International Journal of Epidemiology, 30, 5, 1090–9.Google Scholar