Retirement in Shanghai

Abstract

This study probes those attributes of elderly Chinese related to their retirement status. Despite recent pioneering surveys of the objective conditions of the aged in China, multivariate models of retirement, necessary to inform policy and account for important subgroup differences, have been lacking. The present study brings established multivariate modeling approaches to bear on two companion "Older People in Shanghai" surveys of urban and rural residents. The analytic task is to investigate how the elderly's economic activity is shaped by the traditional Western retirement determinants, health and financial status, as well as by factors that are uniquely Chinese such as family living arrangements and intergenerational support. The pattern of results differs markedly from established Western models, reflecting the importance of historical changes in Chinese pension policy and economic development. For example, health status exhibited no significant effects, and pension benefits for urban males increased the likelihood of working. Although family living arrangements and intergenerational relations differentially influenced the retirement decisions of Chinese elderly, the pattern was not entirely consistent with the general perception of the Chinese family as a key source of social security for the elderly. The results also revealed sex differences in retirement determinants.