Health Trajectories and Socioeconomic Disparities from Life Course Approach on Korean Senior Citizens: Group Based Multi-trajectory Model

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to derive a multidimensional health trajectory of Korean senior citizens from life course approach and to analyze whether socioeconomic disparities appear in each group. Data were taken from the 2nd to 7th Waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging Panel Survey (KLoSA). The study used methodology including group-based multi-trajectory and multinomial logistic regression. As a result, the study revealed five groups with different health trajectories: general aging group (41.6%), healthy aging group (18.2%), depression/cognitive disability group (18.5%), sudden decline in health group (15.6%) and severe health impairment group (6.1%). The gender, income, and assets influenced each group differently whereas education showed no meaningful significance. Specifically, low income and assets were closely related to the sudden decline group and severe health impairment group, whereas income and gender (male) were directly proportional to the status of the healthy aging group (G2). In contrast, the depression/cognitive disability group demonstrated gender (female) was a significant influencing factor but educational background, income, and assets were not related. The study suggests future intervention in health and care policies for each group of different health trajectories is necessary.