Using Changes in Life Satisfaction and Health to Predict the Survival Status Among Older Men and Women in Taiwan

This study used a subjective measure of quality of life, life satisfaction, to predict survival. Time-varying measures were introduced and comparisons were made across gender to test whether the patterns of associations would differ across gender. Results showed that, among female elders, life satisfaction was a significant predictor of survival over a 12-year period, after objective health was controlled for. Findings seem to support that subjective perceptions of well-being are not simply reflections of objective life conditions. As an indicator of subjective well-being, life satisfaction was as important as objective health in predicting survival among older women.