Does Adult Children’s Education Increase Parents’ Longevity in China?

Yanna Ma, Zhanli Ma () and Moqin Yang
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Yanna Ma: School of Economics, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing 100081, China
Zhanli Ma: School of Statistics and Mathematics, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China
Moqin Yang: School of Statistics and Mathematics, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 23, 1-15

Abstract: The populations of some developing countries are aging rapidly, while the average years of schooling for residents are also constantly increasing. However, the question of whether adult children’s education affects the longevity of their older parents remains understudied. This study used China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Survey data to estimate the causal impact of adult children’s education on their parents’ longevity using a truncated regression model. We found that, for every one-unit increase in adult children’s education, fathers’ and mothers’ longevity increases by 0.89 and 0.75 years, respectively. The mechanism analysis shows that adult children’s education significantly increases their provision of emotional and financial support to their parents, as well as their parents’ self-reported health. Further evidence shows that for every one-unit increase in adult children’s education, the longevity of their fathers-in-law and mothers-in-law also increases by 0.40 and 0.46 years, respectively. Improving the level of adult children’s education can thus increase parents’ and parents-in-law’s longevity via three channels: providing emotional and financial support and improving health. A culture in which parents value their children’s education should thus be promoted.

Keywords: adult children’s education; parents’ longevity; truncated regression; emotional support (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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