The hidden cost of informal care: An empirical study on female caregivers' subjective well-being

Lu Chen, Hongli Fan and Lanlan Chu

Social Science & Medicine, 2019, vol. 224, issue C, 85-93

Abstract: Using data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), this study investigated the impact of informal care on female caregivers' subjective well-being in China. We found that informal care significantly reduced the subjective well-being of female caregivers using the instrumental variable (IV) ordered probit model. Our results revealed that the care effect on subjective well-being was more significant for rural caregivers than for urban caregivers. The more hours or more recipients care was provided for, the greater the negative impact on subjective well-being. Based on these findings, we further identified the two channels of ‘wealth’ and ‘health’ through which informal care lowered subjective well-being. These results have implications for policy makers in overcoming the challenges involved in constructing and developing a supportive system of informal care in China.

Keywords: Informal care; Subjective well-being; IV ordered probit model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (18)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:socmed:v:224:y:2019:i:c:p:85-93

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DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2019.01.051

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