Living arrangements and well-being of the elderly.

The usefulness of household composition in characterizing the functional status of the elderly was examined in a random sample of 1,598 noninstitutionalized urban persons aged 65 years and older. Subjects were interviewed twice, one year apart. Five areas of well-being were assessed, including: physical and mental health, social and economic functioning, and ability to perform daily tasks. Living arrangements were categorized as follows: living alone, never married; living alone, ever married; living with spouse; living with spouse and children; living with children, but without spouse; and living with others, not spouse or children. Profiles for those living with children but without spouses and those living with spouses provided the most extreme contrasts. Persons living alone and never married consistently had better outcomes than those living alone but ever married. After one year, changes in living arrangements were most likely to occur for those living with spouse/children and those living with others. For the elderly, "Who lives with you?", is an important question.