Living Alone over the Life Course: Cross‐National Variations on an Emerging Issue

Abstract

The increasing proportion of persons living alone has come to be emblematic in many ways of modern Western societies because it represents the importance conceded to the individual and to individual goals at the expense, basically, of the family. Solo living has been interpreted within the context of changing values and preferences, changing personal and conjugal realities, and the changing work contexts so often associated with the Second Demographic Transition. We know little about patterns and trends in living alone over the life course in much of the world because most research to date has concentrated on regional and national portrayals or on living arrangements in later life. This study provides a systematic look at the differences in living alone by age and sex in 113 countries. Our aim is to understand the extent to which behavior differs around the world and the implications this has for society. We also examine the relationship between trends in living alone and levels of human development. Results are taken from three massive datasets: census and survey microdata from IPUMS‐international, Demographic Health Surveys, and EU‐Labor Force Surveys.

Partnership Status and Living Situation in Persons Experiencing Physical Disability in 22 Countries: Are There Patterns According to Individual and Country-Level Characteristics?

“…Our study’s findings with regard to living situation are in line with previously reported general population trends [ 16 , 33 , 34 ]. The result that males more often live alone may partly be due to higher financial independence of males, and traditional gender/family roles of women in many societies, whereby women stay with kin if they are single and only leave the family when they themselves have found a family [ 33 ].…”

“…Our study’s findings with regard to living situation are in line with previously reported general population trends [ 16 , 33 , 34 ]. The result that males more often live alone may partly be due to higher financial independence of males, and traditional gender/family roles of women in many societies, whereby women stay with kin if they are single and only leave the family when they themselves have found a family [ 33 ]. The finding that older people and people with less severe injuries more often reported to live alone may be related to the higher self-sufficiency and better access to financial resources that enable independent living in a single household, which is also reflected in the finding that those with higher income more often live alone.…”

Substance Use Disorders and COVID-19: Multi-Faceted Problems Which Require Multi-Pronged Solutions

“…Living alone is also associated with depression in older adults (76). The current pandemic potentially adds to the already high percentages of older adults living alone (77). For some older adults with depression, the pandemic-related bereavement might also affect their remission (78).…”

The COVID-19 pandemic in an aging world

“…As a result of all of these factors, at present percentages of living alone have reached extremely high levels, as high as 50% or more among women (aged 75-79) and 20-30% among men. Levels are by far the highest in the most developed nations of the world, but there is some indication that they are on the rise everywhere (Esteve et al, 2020). Recent research has also shown a sharp growth in the proportion living alone in later life although, in some countries where it peaked relatively early (Nordic countries, the UK, the USA), there has been a moderate decline in these rates over the past 20 years, though not in the actual number of elderly living alone (Reher and Requena, 2019).…”