Education of adult children and mortality of their elderly parents in Taiwan

Journal ArticleResearch shows an older adult's education is strongly associated with mortality. But in societies such as Taiwan, where families are highly integrated, the education of family members may be linked to survival. Such may be the case in settings where there are large gaps in levels of education across generations and high levels of resource transfers between family members. This study employs 14 years of longitudinal data from Taiwan to examine the combined effects of education of older adults and their adult children on mortality outcomes of older adults. Nested Gompertz hazard models are used to evaluate the importance of education of an older adult and their highest-educated child after controlling for socioeconomic, demographic, and health characteristics. To gain further insight, additional models stratify results by whether older adults report serious chronic health conditions. Results indicate that educational levels of both parent and child are associated with older adult mortality, but the child's education is more important when a) controlling for the health of the older adult, and b) when examining only those older adults who already report a serious chronic condition, suggesting different roles for education in onset versus progression of a health disorder that may lead to death

Changes in functional limitations and survival among the elderly in Taiwan: 1993, 1996, and 1999

Journal ArticleThis paper focuses on changes in the prevalence of functional limitations among nationally representative samples of adults aged 65 and older in Taiwan as measured in 1993, 1996, and 1999. Using data from the Survey of Health and Living Status of the Elderly in Taiwan, we investigate changes in difficulties walking and climbing stairs, two tasks that represent basic lower body movements that are less likely to be influenced by changes in living environments and social roles than are activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living. Results are shown for both unadjusted prevalence rates and rates adjusted for changes in population composition. Findings indicate that Taiwan does not appear to be experiencing the improvements in functioning that have been witnessed recently in the United States. The prevalence of functional limitation increased between 1993 and 1996 and between 1996 and 1999. One possible reason for the increase in limitation is the change in old-age survival in Taiwan, which appeared over the study period to have benefited those who have functional limitations, especially in a severe form. The country's Universal Health Insurance program, established in 1995, may have increased access to care and thus survival of those in poorest health

Determinants of old-age mortality in Taiwan

Journal ArticleRelationships among socio-demographic characteristics, general assessments of health, and old-age mortality are well established in developed countries. There is also an increasing focus on the connection between early-life experiences and late-life health. This paper tests these and other associations using representative survey data from Taiwan on the population aged 60 and older in 1989, 1993, and 1996 that have been linked to data on deaths between 1989 and 1999 from a national death registry. The study also explores the possible influence of Taiwan's Universal Health Insurance Program, instituted in 1995, and whether or not the survival of some groups of older people may have been differentially enhanced. Mortality is modeled using Gompertz regression. Multiple survey waves are employed to construct time-varying covariates. Some results verify findings of past studies; others are new. Effects of education are attenuated after the introduction of some health indicators. Functional and global assessments of health have stronger associations with mortality than do self-reports of health behaviors or particular chronic conditions such as diabetes. Mainlanders have higher survival than others. The survival of older adults with the greatest number and severity of functional limitations improved over the 1990s, suggesting a possible beneficial influence of the insurance program

Determinants of old-age mortality in Taiwan

Relationships among socio-demographic characteristics, general assessments of health, and old-age mortality are well established in developed countries. There is also an increasing focus on the connection between early-life experiences and latelife health. This paper tests these and other associations using representative survey data from Taiwan on the population aged 60 and older in 1989, 1993, and 1996 that have been linked to data on deaths between 1989 and 1999 from a national death registry. The study also explores the possible influence of Taiwan’s Universal Health Insurance Program, instituted in 1995, and whether or not the survival of some groups of older people may have been differentially enhanced. Mortality is modeled using Gompertz regression. Multiple survey waves are employed to construct time-varying covariates. Some results verify findings of past studies; others are new. Effects of education are attenuated after the introduction of some health indicators. Functional and global assessments of health have stronger associations with mortality than do self-reports of health behaviors or particular chronic conditions such as diabetes. Mainlanders have higher survival than others. The survival of older adults with the greatest number and severity of functional limitations improved over the 1990s, suggesting a possible beneficial influence of the insurance program

Does Mentoring Assist in Developing Beginning Principals’ Instructional Leadership Skills?

This study examines the perceptions and experiences of six beginning principals in relation to the effectiveness of District-Created Mentoring Programmes (DCMP) and a statewide Administrator Mentoring Programme (AMP) in Missouri, USA. Data were obtained through the researcher-created Support of Mentors in Developing Instructional Leadership Skills protocol using semi-structured interviews. The data revealed both types of mentoring programmes were weak in providing the appropriate support in each of the six instructional standards of instructional leadership skills. Additionally six strategies for effective mentoring programmes were identified. Implications for practice are important to both district level and university personnel