Population Research ›› 2019, Vol. 43 ›› Issue (4): 85-96.

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The Effect of Caring for Grandchildren on the Health of Middle and Old-Aged People

Han Baoqing1Wang Shengjin2   

  1. Han Baoqing, School of Economics, Renmin University of China;Wang Shengjin , Northeast Asia Research Center, Jilin University.
  • Online:2019-07-29 Published:2019-09-17
  • About author:Han Baoqing is Phd Candidate, School of Economics, Renmin University of China;.jlu.edu.cn;" Wang Shengjin is Director, Northeast Asia Research Center, Jilin University.

照料孙子女对中老年人健康的影响

韩保庆1王胜今2   

  1. 韩保庆1,中国人民大学经济学院博士生;王胜今2,吉林大学东北亚研究中心主任。
  • 作者简介:韩保庆,中国人民大学经济学院博士生;王胜今,吉林大学东北亚研究中心主任。
  • 基金资助:
    本研究为中国人民大学科学研究基金(中央高校基本科研业务费专项资金资助)项目成果(19XNH055)

Abstract: This paper analyzes the positive and negative impact of grandchildren caring time on older people's health. The literature suggests that with the increase of grandchildren caring time, the accelerated increase rate of the positive impact on the middle and old-aged people gradually decreases, while the accelerated increase rate of the negative impact gradually rises. Therefore, the total effect demonstrates a trend of first rising and then declining. This paper empirically tests this hypothesis using the cross-section data of China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study in 2015. The regression results based on both the overall sample and the sub-sample show that with the caring time increasing, the probability of self-reporting health deterioration of the middle and old-aged people declines first and then rises. This paper, comparing the actual grandchildren caring time, the optimal caring time, and the time that the influence of caring for grandchildren equaling to no caring for grandchildren, finds that the Chinese middle and oldaged people spend too much time caring for their grandchildren.

Keywords: Grandchildren, Over-Caring, Middle and Old-Aged People, Subjective Health

摘要: 文章在已有研究基础上分析照料孙子女的时间对中国中老年人健康的有利和不利影响特征。由于随着照料孙子女时间的增加,照料孙子女对中老年人健康有利影响的增加速度在逐渐降低,对中老年人健康不利影响的增加速度反在逐渐增加,照料孙子女对中老年人健康的总影响呈现出先有利后不利的倒U型关系。文章使用2015年中国健康与养老追踪调查的截面数据对理论进行了实证检验,无论是总体样本回归结果,还是分样本回归结果都表明随着照料孙子女时间的增加,中老年人健康自评变差的概率先下降后上升。通过比较中国中老年人实际照料孙子女时间和最优照料时间以及与不照料孙子女无差异照料时间,发现中国中老年人在照料孙子女时间方面存在过度照料。

关键词: 孙子女, 过度照料, 中老年人, 健康自评