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Do adults adjust their socio-economic status identity in later life

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 June 2011

JENNIFER C. CORNMAN ,
NOREEN GOLDMAN ,
AMY LOVE COLLINS ,
DANA A. GLEI ,
BAAI-SHYUN HURNG  and
MAXINE WEINSTEIN
JENNIFER C. CORNMAN*
Affiliation:
Jennifer C. Cornman Consulting, Granville, OH, USA.
NOREEN GOLDMAN
Affiliation:
Office of Population Research, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
DANA A. GLEI
Affiliation:
Center for Population and Health, Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA.
BAAI-SHYUN HURNG
Affiliation:
Bureau of Health Promotion, Department of Health, Taichung, Taiwan.
MAXINE WEINSTEIN
Affiliation:
Center for Population and Health, Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA.
*
Address for correspondence: Jennifer C. Cornman, 113 Chapin Pl, Granville, OH 43023, USA. E-mail: jencornman@gmail.com
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Abstract

Previous research shows that socio-economic status (SES) identity, also referred to as perceived or subjective social status, is shaped by objective measures of status, socio-cultural influences and psychological attributes and predicts current and future wellbeing. Prior studies, however, have not examined whether older adults reassess their SES identity over time. In this study, we use two assessments of subjective social status measured six years apart in a sample of older Taiwanese adults to: (a) determine the degree to which respondents adjust their perceptions of social rank; and (b) identify the characteristics of individuals who are most likely to revise their assessments. We find that many older Taiwanese adults reassess their SES identity, but most respondents show small to moderate levels of change. Females, more highly educated respondents, and those who have a positive economic outlook tend to revise their subjective social status upward relative to their respective counterparts; those who become widowed during the period adjust their rankings downward compared with those who do not become widowed. These findings suggest that SES identity may be dynamic, highlighting the importance of collecting information on SES identity at multiple points in the lifecourse.

Keywords

subjective social statusolder adultsTaiwan
Type
Articles
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 32 , Issue 4 , May 2012 , pp. 616 - 633
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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