Trends in Elderly Poverty in Hong Kong: A Decomposition Analysis

Siu-Yau Lee () and Kee-Lee Chou ()
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Siu-Yau Lee: The Hong Kong Institute of Education
Kee-Lee Chou: The Hong Kong Institute of Education

Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, 2016, vol. 129, issue 2, No 4, 564 pages

Abstract: Abstract Despite significant improvements in education and a decline in the percentage of immigrants in elderly population, the poverty risk in old age and the actual number of impoverished elders in Hong Kong have both increased significantly over the past two decades. This study assesses the changing rates of elderly poverty in Hong Kong over the last 20 years and, by means of decomposition analysis, identifies the factors shaping their evolution. The analysis is based on the 5 % microdata samples from the 1991, 2001, and 2011 censuses covering Hong Kong residents aged 65 and above. The results show that the rate of poverty among older adults increased from 27.7 % in 1991 to 38.7 % in 2001, and then to 41.4 % in 2011. The increase was largely caused by a significant decline in the number of earners in the households with older adults, which offset the poverty-reducing effects of education and the percentage decrease of immigrants.

Keywords: Elderly poverty; Decomposition analysis; Hong Kong (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1007/s11205-015-1120-5

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