Britt Slagsvold

Age, Education, and the Gender Gap in the Sense of Control

High sense of control is related to benefits in many aspects of life, and education is known to be strongly related to sense of control. In this article we explore why women tend to feel a lower sense of control than men, and why the sense of control tends to be lower among the elderly than among younger people. In particular we explore the role played by education in explaining age- and gender differences in sense of control. The analysis is based on data from the first wave of the Norwegian NorLAG study, with a representative sample of adults aged 40–79 in 30 municipalities. We find that education accounts for some of the age and gender differences in sense of control, but the mediating effects of education are rather modest. We find an increasing gender gap in sense of control with age, and this increasing gap is completely explained by differences in education. Gender differences in sense of control is explained completely by four factors, which are related to resources and power; physical health, education, living with a partner, and leadership experience. Age differences in sense of control are only partially explained. Education, physical health and employment status cuts the age effect on sense of control to half. The effect of education on sense of control is partly mediated through what we suggest are tangible benefits of education, namely health, employment, and leadership experience. Education also influences individuals through socialization mechanisms. We view agentive orientation as a psychological benefit of education, and measure this characteristic with Bems (1981) sex-role scale on masculinity. Agentive orientation completely explains the remaining effect of education on sense of control.

The psychological effects of providing personal care to a partner: a multidimensional perspective

The expected increasing demand for informal care in aging societies underscores the importance of understanding the psychological implications of caregiving. This study explores the effect of providing regular help with personal care to a partner on different aspects of psychological well-being. We use cross-sectional data from the Norwegian Life Course, Ageing and Generation study (n. ~15,000; age 40-84) and two-wave panel data from the Norwegian study on Life Course, Ageing and Generation (n. ~3000; age 40-84). To separate the effects of providing care from those of the partner’s disability, caregivers are contrasted with non-caregivers with both disabled and nondisabled partners. We separate outcomes into cognitive well-being (life satisfaction), psychological functioning (self-esteem, mastery), and affective well-being (happiness, depression, loneliness). Findings show that caregiving has important cross-sectional and longitudinal detrimental psychological effects. These effects are fairly consistent across all aspects of well-being, demonstrating that caregiving has a broad-based negative impact. Among women, however, these effects are similar to if not weaker than the effects of a partner’s disability. Caregiving effects are constant by age, education, and employment status, but stronger among caregivers with health problems. Providing personal care to a partner is associated with marked adverse psychological effects for men and women irrespective of age and socio-economic status. Hence, no sociodemographic group is immune from caregiving stress, so programs should be targeted generally. The results also suggest that the health needs of caregivers demand more attention.

Changes in sense of control in the second half of life: results from a 5-year panel study.

Very few studies have used longitudinal data to examine whether age variations in the sense of control are due to ageing effects or cohort differences. With data from two waves of the Norwegian NorLAG study, with 2673 respondents aged 40 to 75 we ask: Does the sense of control decline over a 5-year period? Are there factors that accelerate the decline or slow it? We find that while cross-sectional comparisons indicate increases in sense of control up to age 75, longitudinal analysis show little to no change over 5 years. Only those 75 and older experienced a significant decline over the next 5 years. Physical health and agentive orientation at baseline can impede or accelerate decline in the sense of control. We also find that decline in sense of control starts 15 years later in this Norwegian sample than in similar studies in the United States, and discuss this finding in light of differences in welfare systems for elderly in the two countries.

Educational inequalities in late-life depression across Europe: results from the generations and gender survey

This study explores country- and gender-stratified educational differences in depression among older adults from 10 European countries. We examine inequalities in both absolute (prevalence differences) and relative (odds ratios) terms and in bivariate and multivariate models. We use cross-sectional, nationally representative data from the generations and gender survey. The analysis comprises 27,331 Europeans aged 60–80. Depression is measured with a seven-item version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale. Findings show considerable between-country heterogeneity in late-life depression. An East–West gradient is evident, with rates of depression up to three times higher in Eastern European than in Scandinavian countries. Rates are about twice as high among women than men in all countries. Findings reveal marked absolute educational gaps in depression in all countries, yet the gaps are larger in weaker welfare states. This pattern is less pronounced for the relative inequalities, especially for women. Some countries observe similar relative inequalities but vastly different absolute inequalities. We argue that the absolute differences are more important for social policy development and evaluation. Educational gradients in depression are strongly mediated by individual-level health and financial variables. Socioeconomic variation in late-life depression is greater in countries with poorer economic development and welfare programs.