The Socio-economic determinants of the life satisfaction of older persons in Myanmar in 2019

Myanmar has undergone significant demographic changes, and the share of the older population has increased. Myanmar is facing the challenge in providing social protections to the increasing number of older people, like many other rapidly-ageing societies. As people get older, their physical health and functional ability deteriorate and, as a result, their life satisfaction also declines in most cases. Therefore, it is crucial to consider factors that contribute to the perception of life satisfaction among this venerable cohort. This study explored the determinants of life satisfaction of older persons and investigated whether there are gender differences in the determinants of life satisfaction of older persons in Myanmar. This study used secondary data from the 2019 cross-sectional Myanmar Inter-censal Survey. This study analysed 65,065 older persons aged 60 and over using univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analysis. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the factors associated with various types of life satisfaction, namely unsatisfied, neutral, fairly satisfied, and very satisfied. Binary logistic regression was used to approach this association from a gender perspective. This study reveals that an urban setting and living with at least one child are essential factors contributing to higher life satisfaction of older persons. Having higher education, having higher household income, living in a better house, and having a better health status are the key factors in determining the life satisfaction of older persons. From the gender perspective, living arrangement patterns and house ownership status are associated with the life satisfaction of older women but not older men. For men, working as own account workers is positively associated with life satisfaction; however, this association does not hold for women. This study suggests that, in addition to socio-economic factors, the life satisfaction of older persons is also associated with area of residence, living arrangement, and health-related factors. The results have policy implications in terms of social protection strategies to improve the life satisfaction among older persons in Myanmar.