Determinants of self appraisal of health status among older adults in Malaysia and Singapore: findings from the future of retirement survey 2007

Health is one of the most important factors in one‘s life and it becomes a key concern among older adults across the globe. This may be a unique feature across different geographical regions of the world. Much has been written on the subjective health of older populations across many countries with a view to understanding the overall health situation among older adults. These studies are solely concentrated on either an individual country or a specific region within the country. More research is needed on global, regional as well as country perspectives to understand the health status and to tease out the common factors associated with the self-reported health. This will better enable cross-cultural comparisons. The principle aim of this study has been to investigate the correlates of self-rated health or self-reported health (SRH) among older adults both in Malaysia and Singapore. It examines how older adults perceive their own health and what factors are associated with the reporting of an individual‘s own health status. The study uses data collected in the HSBC Bank Ltd. global ageing study. Popularly known as the Future of Retirement Survey 2007, data were collected from 21,233 individuals aged between 40 and 79 years across 21 countries and territories in five major regions of the world. It is the largest global ageing survey of its kind that investigates attitudes towards later life, ageing and retirement. Each individual was asked a battery of structured questions regarding their socio-economic status, health conditions, social networks, saving and investments, and preparedness for retirement. In the present study, we found that health inequalities exist among older adults across the globe and that Singaporean adults enjoy healthier life than Malaysians. There exists a strong positive relationship between chronological age and poorer health outcome. Our analysis also demonstrates that the two countries have almost consistent results with regard to the influences of selected covariates on individual health. For example, poorer health is more prevalent among people with lower education; widowed, divorced and separated group; and those working in a blue collar occupation. These findings enhance our knowledge of older persons‘ health status, and in turn will be useful in making effective policy formulations for the governments of Malaysia and Singapore. Finally, some policy recommendations are made and future research directions are suggested.