人口研究 ›› 2021, Vol. 45 ›› Issue (2): 47-60.

• 老龄问题研究 • 上一篇    下一篇

生育数量对老年人抑郁的影响

杨华磊1,吴远洋2,张思清3,张硕4   

  1. 杨华磊1,中南财经政法大学公共管理学院;吴远洋2、张思清3、张硕4,中南财经政法大学公共管理学院。
  • 出版日期:2021-03-29 发布日期:2021-04-08
  • 作者简介:杨华磊,中南财经政法大学公共管理学院副教授;吴远洋、张思清、张硕,中南财经政法大学公共管理学院硕士研究生。
  • 基金资助:
    本文得到国家社会科学基金重大项目“长寿风险的宏观经济效应及对策研究”(17ZDA049)、国家自然科学基金青年项目“农村女性非农就业对生育决策的影响机理与生育支持政策研究”(71903177)、教育部人文社会科学基金青年项目“60后婴儿潮退出劳动市场对经济增长的冲击效应模拟与应对策略研究”(19YJC790167)的资助。

Effect of Number of Births on Depressive Symptoms of Older Adults

Yang Hualei1,Wu Yuanyang2,Zhang Siqing3,Zhang Shuo4   

  1. Yang Hualei1, School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law; Wu Yuanyang2, Zhang Siqing3, and Zhang Shuo4, School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law.
  • Online:2021-03-29 Published:2021-04-08
  • About author:Yang Hualei is Associate Professor, School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law; Wu Yuanyang, Zhang Siqing, and Zhang Shuo are Master Students, School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law.

摘要: 抑郁作为常见的心理疾病严重影响了老年人的晚年生活质量,生育作为重要的生命事件会对个体老年期的健康状况产生累积影响。中国当前生育政策的放开将改变人们的生育模式,其中,最直接的就是生育数量的改变。为科学地回答生育数量如何影响老年人心理健康这一关乎晚年福祉的现实问题,基于2013年中国健康与养老追踪调查数据,采用OLS和Probit模型考察了中国老年人的生育数量对其晚年抑郁的影响。经验求证后发现,生育数量增加对老年人的抑郁程度存在显著的恶化影响,在生育3个及以上孩子的老年人中尤其明显。中介分析发现,生育数量通过改变个体生理健康和子女的家庭支持影响老年人的心理健康。进一步分析发现,在中国农村、60~70岁以及女性老年人中这种恶化作用更加突出,较晚的初育年龄、较长的生育期也对老年群体的心理健康产生不利影响。

关键词: 生育数量, 生育行为, 老年人, 抑郁, 精神健康

Abstract: As a life event, fertility behavior has accumulative impacts on individuals' later-life health. This paper examines the effect of the number of births on Chinese older adults' depression by applying OLS and Probit models on data from the 2013 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. Older adults with more children have more depressive symptoms. This negative association is more pronounced among those having three or more children. The mediation analysis suggests that the number of children affects the mental health of the older adults because it influences individuals' physical health and support from children. Analyses on the subgroups suggest that the influence of fertility on depressive symptoms is significant among rural older adults, adults aged 60-70 and older women. Other reproductive behaviors such as an older age at first birth and a longer reproductive period also adversely affect the mental health of older adults.

Keywords: Number of Births, Reproductive Behavior, Older Adults, Depression, Mental Health