Among the elderly, women and the less educated are most likely to live alone, while those with more children and higher education are less likely to do so, a recent local study has found. It also found that elderly men who live alone are more susceptible to financial and social woes, while elderly women who live with their children but not a spouse, tend to have little outside contact and a low sense of control over their lives.
A total of 4,990 Singaporeans aged 60 and above were surveyed in 2009, while 3,103 of the same people or their proxy respondents were re-interviewed in 2011, in the study done by a team from the Duke-NUS Centre for Ageing Research and Education. According to the study's 2009 data, 88 per cent of older Singaporeans live with their spouse and/or children, though a small but growing proportion live with others (6 per cent) or alone (6 per cent).
While many findings are in line with existing literature, Associate Professor Angelique Chan, one of the study's lead researchers, said one surprising find was that older women living with their children were not very socially integrated. "The traditional idea is that older women living with their children are fine, but not having a spouse seems to shrink their social network. Moving into their child's house may also make them feel like they have to go by their child's rules, and have less control," added Dr Chan. More outreach should be done to this group, she said.
Social worker Danny Chee, a project coordinator at CARElderly Seniors Activity Centre in MacPherson, agrees. Many seniors who frequent the centre seem neglected and lonely, said the 48 year old. In MacPherson, nearly half its 28,000 residents are aged 50 and above. Of these, 1,400 live alone.
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Something Small Thinking Big
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