A Life Course Pinch Point: The Impact of Combining Multigenerational Caregiving and Paid Work on Health in Later Life

预期寿命的延长、领取国家养恤金年龄的提高以及妇女劳动参与率的提高意味着老年人正在摆脱依赖他人的形象，而是积极参与劳动力市场和家庭。虽然老年人预计将在不同的社会和经济领域发挥越来越重要的作用，但老年人承担多重角色的后果尚未得到充分理解。在人口老龄化时代，促进老年人的健康和福祉是许多国家的一项政策关切。了解老年人如何将联合收割机多代同堂与有酬工作结合起来，对家庭和劳动政策都有意义。以前的研究调查了多重角色的影响，重点是年轻的父母和中年人，但很少关注老年人，他们可能会在继续就业的同时照顾他们的孙子，年长的父母和配偶。此外，大多数相关研究都是在西方国家的背景下进行的。中国在老年人的社会义务、社会护理设施和就业公共政策方面是独一无二的。然而，对中国的研究大多忽视了在不同的人生阶段扮演各种角色的动态性。该项目将从性别生命历程的角度探讨老年人如何平衡工作和家庭责任，以及其对健康的长期影响。还将调查区域差异和性别差异，以加深理解。此外，还将对中英两国进行比较分析，以进一步探讨社会、文化和政策背景在有薪就业、退休和无薪工作中的作用。具体的研究问题如下：老年人的工作模式和生活轨迹与工作的时间和顺序以及一生中的护理状况有什么关系？不同的工作和护理轨迹与老年人的健康和福祉之间有什么关系？这些关系是否通过代际交换（包括经济、工具和情感转移）来调节？性别如何影响中国和英国老年人的生活、就业和健康结果？是否存在空间不平等（例如，中国和英国之间的这种关系有什么不同？本研究将使用两个丰富的纵向数据集：中国健康与退休纵向研究（CHARLS）和英国老龄化纵向研究（艾尔莎）。这项研究将首先通过考虑工作的时间和顺序以及生命历程中的工作状态来确定多角色轨迹的模式。将通过使用多层次模型以更细致的方式调查区域差异。此外，本研究亦会探讨有薪工作、多代同堂及晚年健康之间的关系，以加深对健康晚年的认识。不同的统计技术，包括两阶段潜在类别分析，路径分析和多重插补将被应用于提供具体的实证证据。这个拟议的博士项目将有助于相关学术领域的知识，包括人口健康，人口学和经济学。除了学术领域，该研究还旨在使更广泛的受众受益-雇主，政策制定者，老年人及其家庭，可能会促进有关医疗保健，老年人护理，儿童保育，就业和养老金的循证政策制定。它还旨在改善老年人的健康和福祉，减少老龄化可能给个人和社会带来的代价。本研究对地理差异的研究将为决策者提供有关有效分配卫生资源的见解。

Increasing life expectancy, rising state pension age and women's increased labour participation mean that older adults are shedding the image of dependency and instead actively taking part in both labour market and family. Although older adults are expected to play increasingly important roles in different social and economic spheres, the consequences of shouldering multiple roles for older adults haven't been fully understood. In the era of population ageing, it is a policy concern to promote the health and wellbeing of the elderly in many countries. Understanding the ways in which older people combine multigenerational caregiving with paid work is relevant for both family and labour policy. Previous research investigating the effect of multiple roles, focus on young parents and people in their mid-age, yet less attention has been given to older generation who might take care of their grandchildren, older parents and spouses whilst continuing employment. Moreover, most relevant research has been done in the context of western countries. China is unique regarding its social obligations of older people, social care facilities, and public policy on employment. However, research on China mostly ignores the dynamic nature of performing various roles in different life stages. Adopting a gendered life course perspective, this project will explore how older adults balance work and family responsibilities, and its long-term implications on health. Regional disparity and gender difference will also be investigated to enrich understanding. Additionally, a comparative analysis between China and UK will be conducted to further explore the roles of social, cultural and policy contexts regarding paid employment, retirement and unpaid caregiving. The specific research questions are as follows:What are the patterns of the work and caregiving trajectories of older people in relation to timing and order of work and care status over the life course? What are the relationships between different work and care trajectories and the health and wellbeing of older people?Are these relationships mediated by the intergenerational exchanges (including financial, instrumental and emotional transfers)?How does gender influence the caregiving and employment and the health outcomes of older people in China and the UK? Are there spatial inequalities (e.g., rural-urban divide, provincial variation) in these relationships within China and the UK?This research will be made possible by using two rich longitudinal datasets: China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) and English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). The research will first identify the patterns of multiple-roles trajectories by taking into account timing and order of work and caregiving status over the life course. The regional disparity will be investigated in a more nuanced way by using multilevel modelling. Furthermore, the pathways linking the paid work, multigenerational caregiving and the health in later life will also be examined to obtain a more in-depth understanding of healthy ageing. Different statistical techniques, including Two-stage Latent Class Analysis, path analysis and multiple imputation will be applied to provide concrete empirical evidence.This proposed PhD project will contribute to the knowledge of related academic fields, including population health, demography and economics. In addition to the academic sphere, the research aims to benefit a wider audience - employers, policy makers, and older people and their families, possibly prompting evidence-based policy making regarding healthcare, elderly care, childcare, employment and pensions. It also aims at improving the health and wellbeing of older people and reducing the potentially individual and societal cost of ageing. The examination of geographical variation in this study will provide insights for policy makers regarding the effective allocation of health resources.