Page 54 - IJPS-11-5

International Journal of
Population Studies Need for social services among disabled older Chinese

without ADL disabilities may still require social connection approach to social service development will be essential for
services. Comparative studies between ADL-disabled and enhancing the well-being of its aging population.
non-disabled older adults would add additional value to
the existing literature. Acknowledgments
Despite these limitations, this study advanced our None.
understanding of the need for home- and community-
based services in several ways. By utilizing a nationally Funding
representative longitudinal survey with the largest sample None.
size of older adults, this study considered eight social
services and classified them into two types of services, thus Conflict of interest
providing a more comprehensive picture of social service Danan Gu is the Editor-in-chief of the journal, and Haiyan
needs than previous studies, most of which only focused Zhu is an Editorial Board Member of this journal, but did
on one or two types of services (e.g., Liu et al., 2014; Liu
et al., 2015). Second, we compared the differences in not in any way involve in the editorial and peer-review
need and its determinants between rural and urban areas, process conducted for this paper, directly or indirectly.
which revealed important differences in the need for social Author contributions
services, as well as in enabling and need factors.
Conceptualization: All authors
5. Conclusion Formal analysis: All authors
This study used a nationally representative sample from Methodology: All authors
the CLHLS to examine the need for social services among Investigation: All authors
8,548 Chinese older adults (aged 65+) who reported Writing – original draft: All authors
difficulties with ADLs between 2005 and 2018. Our Writing – review & editing: All authors
findings reveal significant rural-urban disparities in social Ethics approval and consent to participate
service needs among disabled older adults in China.
Rural residents exhibited a greater need for both basic The data used in this study were obtained from a publicly
care and social connection services compared to their accessible database, the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy
urban counterparts, highlighting the increasing challenges Longevity Survey (https://www.icpsr.umich.edu/web/
faced by older adults in rural areas due to the decline of NACDA/studies/37227).
traditional family support.
Moreover, our study underscores the influence of Consent for publication
economic and household factors on these needs. Not applicable.
Economic independence was associated with a lower
demand for social services in urban areas, suggesting Availability of data
that financial stability enables older adults to secure The data are publicly available at https://www.icpsr.umich.
alternative sources of support. Conversely, severe disability edu/web/NACDA/studies/37227.
in ADLs increased the need for both types of services
among urban older adults, reflecting gaps in existing care Further disclosure
structures. Additionally, co-residence with children was
linked to a reduced need for basic care services in both Views expressed in the article are solely those of the authors
rural and urban settings, reaffirming the critical role of and do not reflect those of Virginia Polytechnic Institute
family support in eldercare. and State University or the United Nations.
These findings highlight the urgent need to strengthen References
social service infrastructure, particularly in rural China, Andersen, R., & Newman, J.F. (1973). Societal and individual
where the weakening of family-based care has left many determinants of medical care utilization in the United States.
older adults vulnerable. Policymakers should prioritize Milbank Memorial Fund Quarterly, 51(1):95-124.
expanding accessible and affordable social services, such as
home-based care and community engagement programs, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0009.2005.00428.x
while implementing tailored policies that address economic Andersen, R.M. (1995). Revisiting the behavioral model and
and disability-related disparities. As China undergoes access to medical care: Does it matter? Journal of Health and
rapid demographic shifts, a comprehensive and inclusive Social Behavior, 36(1):1-10.

Volume 11 Issue 5 (2025) 48 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.448