The Impact of Economic resources, Social Capital and Health Behavior on Self-assessed Health of older people in South Korea

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify the impact of ecomomic resources, social capital and health behavior on the self-assessed health in later life. The self-rated health of the elderly is closely related to depression, happiness, and quality of life (Kim, 2016) Previous studies focused on the effects of income and assets(Lee&Han,2020), poverty and socioeconomic deprivation(Kim et al.,2018), or quantitative aspects of social networks on Self-assessment Health of older people. This study tried to overcome the limitations of previous studies by considering the complex aspects of the lives of older people in South Korea. Method. In this study, a hierarchical regression analysis was performed on older people (6,488 people) aged 65 and over from the data of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging (KLoSA, 2020). In current study, the effect of the three dimensions of economic resources, social capital, and health behavior on health (self-assessed health level) was set as a research model. This study controlled for gender, generation, education, geriatric disease, degree of depression, and life satisfaction (including economic status satisfaction).  Results and Discussion The impact of some economic resources on health was robust in all models (1. economic resources, 2. economic resources, social capital, 3. economic resources, social capital and health behaviors). Private pensions showed a very positive effect in all three models, whereas public pensions showed negative effects in all three models. Social capital was not found to be statistically significant in both models. The results of this study were inconsistent with the results of previous studies (Kim, 2016) on the effect of social capital on the self-rated health of the elderly. Health behaviors (non-smoking, non-drinking, regular exercises) and frequency of use of medical services were found to have a negative effect on self-assessment health. The data collection period is 2020, in the early stages of COVID-19. Research results on social capital and health behavior should be interpreted with caution. This study is meaningful in that it examines the three dimensions that affect the health of older people in South Korea - economic resources, social capital, and health behavior. We argue that economic resources, social capital, and health behaviors should be comprehensively considered when formulating health promotion policies for older people in South Korea.