Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI) - National Academies

Longitudinal
Aging Study in
India (LASI)

P . Arokiasamy

International Institute for Population Sciences
Mumbai, India

Policy Research and Data Needs to Meet
Challenges of Population Ageing in Asia, Beijing
December 9-0, 2010

The Economist weighs in again

¡ India’s age structure is evolving
in the same direction as
China’s.

¡ It’s behind China, but the
share of its population that is of
working age is growing. India
stands ready to reap a
demographic dividend.

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Older Indians

UN World Population Prospects , 2008 Revision

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Rapid growth in number and share
of older Indians expected by 2050

UN World Population Prospects , 2008 Revision

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Figure 2 Trends in population growth rate by
broad age groups in south Indian States

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

2020

2030

2040

2050

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

2020

2030

2040

2050

Total Fertility Rate, India and states, 2005-06

Challenges of population
aging in India

¡Breakdown of extended
family structure

¡ Falling fertility rates
¡ Urbanization
¡ Women to work – so less

caregiving
¡ Mobility of younger

generation
¡ Generation gap

¡Access to health care

¡Old-age economic
security

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

The LASI story

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Core LASI team

HARVARD INTERNATIONAL RAND
SCHOOL OF INSTITUTE FOR CORPORATION
POPULATION
PUBLIC SCIENCES
HEALTH

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

LASI team members National advisory committee International advisory

Perianayagam Arokiasamy, IIPS (co- Director, IIPS (ex officio) committee

Principal Investigator) Director-General, Indian Council of Medical James Banks, University College
London
David E. Bloom, Harvard University Research and Secretary, Department of Health Axel Börsch-Supan, Universitat
Mannheim
(Principal Investigator) Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Somnath Chatterji, World Health
Organization
Jinkook Lee, RAND Corporation (co- (MOHFW), Government of India (GOI) (ex Arie Kapteyn, RAND
Corporation
Principal Investigator) officio) Michael Marmot, University
College London
Director-General of Health Services, MOHFW, James P. Smith, RAND
Corporation
Lisa Berkman, Harvard University GOI (ex officio) David Weir, University of
Michigan
David Canning, Harvard University Additional Director-General, Statistics, MOHFW, David Wise, Harvard University
Yaohui Zhao, Beijing University
Amitabh Chandra, Harvard University GOI (ex officio)

Nicholas Christakis, Harvard University Chief Director, Statistics MOHFW, GOI (ex

Adeline Delavande, RAND officio)

Corporation

Peifeng Hu, University of California, Mooneer Alam, Institute of Economic Growth

Los Angeles Suman Bery, National Council for Applied

Tarun Khanna, Harvard University Economic Research

Ajay Mahal, Monash University Shalini Bharat, Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Arvind Mathur, IAG P.M. Kulkarni, Jawaharlal Nehru University

S.K. Mohanty, IIPS I.S. Gambhir, Banares Hindu University

Sulabha Parasuraman, IIPS S. Irudaya Rajan, Center for Development

Arun Risbud, NARI Studies

T.V. Sekher, IIPS S. Siva Raju, Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Kavita Sivaramakrishnan, Columbia K. Srinath Reddy, Public Health Foundation of

University India

S.V. Subramanian, Harvard University Gita Sen, Indian Institute of Management

Bas Weerman, RAND Corporation

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

LASI

¡Vision and Goals

¡Evidence base that can be used to
conduct descriptive, causal, and policy
analyses

¡Harmonization with other HRS
¡Follow 30,000 individuals longitudinally

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

HRS: an instrument to help address the
problem of global population aging

¡ Measure health and its determinants and
consequences over the later portions of the life cycle

¡ Integration of major domains of life into a common
survey

¡ Science-based agenda
¡ Methodologically innovative
¡ Respect for local knowledge
¡ Public access to data
¡ Power of adopting a longitudinal focus

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

HRS worldwide

¡ English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA)
¡ Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE): aims

to include all EU member countries

¡ Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece,
Ireland, Israel, Italy, The Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden and
Switzerland.

¡ 2010-2011: Estonia, Hungary, Luxembourg and Portugal

¡ Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS)
¡ Korean Longitudinal Study on Aging (KLoSA)
¡ Chinese Health and Retirement Study (CHARLS)
¡ Irish Longitudinal study on Ageing (TILDA)
¡ Japanese Study of Aging and Retirement (JSTAR)

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Survey HRS CHARLS KLoSA J-STAR

Country United States P .R. of China Rep. of Korea Japan

Enrolment years 199220, 0149,9230, 110998, 2008, 2011 2006 2007,
2009
Follow-up Every 2 years Follow-up in 2011 Every 2 years Every 2 years
frequency then every 2 years
Number of waves 1
available to date 812 4,200
Sample size
30,000 10,000 10,000

Age eligibility 50+ 45+ 45+ 50 – 75

Response rate, 70-81% 82% 65% 60%
baseline

Harmonization across countries

¡Countries can learn from the experience of
each other

¡Institutional responses to demographic change
vary across countries, thus creating an
“experiment” of sorts

¡To take advantage of this experiment, data
must be comparable

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Challenges of an Indian HRS

¡ Heavily rural
¡ Large informal economy
¡ Institutional complexity
¡ Many languages
¡ Urbanization and migration
¡ Heterogeneity within urban areas
¡ Seasonal considerations
¡ Survey challenges: knowledge of age, notion of

retirement

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Research Design

¡ Representativeness –National
¡ Panel Sample size- 30,000
¡ Longitudinal – 25 years
¡ Every 2 years
¡ First wave in 2012 (after 2011 census results)
¡ Households with one and more persons in age 45+
¡ All persons in age 45 + and their spouses

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Multi-stage Area Probability Sample Design

¡ LASI sample selection will consists of three-stage
area probability sampling. The primary (first) stage
and second stage of sample selection involve
probability proportionate to size. The first two stages
involve sample area selection and third stage
involves household selection.

¡ LASI sampling design involves independent drawing
of sample in each region of North, Center, East,
North-east, West and South in each of four regions of
North, East, West and South sample consists of
metropolitan city (self-representing unit) and other
areas (Non-self-representing units).

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

LASI innovations

¡LASI Instrument

¡ CAPI
¡Show cards

¡Biomarkers

¡Physical measures

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

LASI Innovations

¡ Community level data using GIS -Verification,
geocoding, thematic mapping and community
analysis

¡ Physical Environment- land, water, indoor and outdoor
air-quality, access to sanitation, and climatic
conditions

¡ Survey scope expanded to include information on
infectious diseases, diet and nutritional intake

¡ Comprehensive coverage of biomarkers

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

LASI instrument

¡Final product: Two-part survey

¡ Household questionnaire
¡ Coverscreen, Housing and Environment, Income,
Assets and Debts, Consumption

¡ Individual questionnaire
¡ Demographics, Family and Social Networks,
Health, Biomarkers, Health Care Utilization, Work
and Employment,
Pension, Experimental Modules (Anchoring
Vignettes, Social Connectedness, Expectations )

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Refining the survey instrument

¡Pre-Pilot - Pre-test: 100 CAPI interviews

¡Purpose: to understand how LASI instrument
functions in the field

¡Translation of the survey instrument

¡State language specific pre-test to gauge
language and cultural differences.
50 pretest interviews for each language

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing
(CAPI)

¡Field teams are equipped with laptop
computers

¡Responses are input directly into
computers

¡Checking data accuracy in real-time

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)



Show cards: sources of water

Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)