Wellbeing later in life

Wellbeing lower for older parents with kids still at home

The rising age of first time parents may be bad for wellbeing later in life.

New findings from The Australian Unity Wellbeing Index reveal that Australians over-55 with children living at home have a lower wellbeing (71.7 per cent average strength of satisfaction) than their peers living without children at home (79.0 per cent).

The sixth wave of The Australian Unity Wellbeing Index - a partnership between financial services and healthcare company Australian Unity and Deakin University - also found that the presence of dependent children makes little difference to adult wellbeing up to 55 years of age, but adults beyond this age fail to experience the upward surge in wellbeing otherwise experienced by this age group after the children have left home.

Professor Robert A. Cummins from Deakin University's Australian Centre on Quality of Life and joint author of the Index, said the latest finding challenged previous data that had found people over-55 experienced a steep rise in wellbeing.

"The new findings show this rise in wellbeing after 55 is a reliable feature of our surveys, but is only happening for those living without children at home. If they are living with a child then this rise fails to eventuate," Professor Cummins said.
"So for the over-55s, it would appear the presence of children has a detrimental effect on wellbeing."

The Australian National University's Mr Richard Eckersley, social analyst and also joint author of the Index, said a number of factors could be contributing to a reduced wellbeing.

"Possible reasons are that older parents don't have the energy of younger parents; they generally have older, even adult, children; they face increased financial pressures as they move into retirement; and they are more likely to have blended or second families.

"All these things could impact on their wellbeing," Mr Eckersley said.

Group Managing Director of Australian Unity, Mr Ian Ferres, said the findings highlighted the implications of a societal trend that saw Australians having children later and children staying at home longer.

"Many Australians are now waiting wait until they have built a sound financial base and experienced travel, reached a certain level in their career or purchased a house before they start families. And children are staying at home longer to undertake tertiary studies or help achieve more financial independence," Mr Ferres said.

"It is evident from the survey results that Australians need to consider how they will manage the financial burden of having dependent children during a time in their lives when they have traditionally planned for their retirement.

"While people do recognise the need for planning they often don't, and the latest findings signal a trend which looks set to continue."

The data have also been useful in informing public debate about the type of society Australians want to live in.

Mr Eckersley said a specific focus of survey six was the Iraq situation and the aftermath of the Bali terrorist attacks.

"Interestingly, people who opposed the war on Iraq reported lower personal wellbeing (74 per cent average strength of satisfaction) and national wellbeing (56 per cent) than those who supported it (76 per cent and 66 per cent)," Mr Eckersley said.

Opposition to the war was higher among women and people who are university educated. Support for the war was highest among those aged 56-65 and lowest for those aged 18-25.

In other findings from The Australian Unity Wellbeing Index:

• Australians were more satisfied with their connection to the community and their personal safety if they lived in households with children.
• Australians' satisfaction with their personal wellbeing rose to an all time high of 75.2 per cent since the inaugural Index (April 2001).
• Satisfaction increased slightly with all aspects of life except future security, with the largest rise being for personal relationships which rose to 80.6 per cent (the first time satisfaction with a core personal aspect of life has exceeded 80 per cent).

- The Australian Unity Wellbeing Index