Estonian Human Development Report

tors of day centres for the elderly and 14% visit the day centres
sparsely, with older people living in rural areas being
more active in this regard than those living in cities (Tiit &
Saks, 2002; Saks et al., 2002). Nearly a quarter of the elderly
population participate in church-related activities. A fifth of
the respondents reported that they would like to participate
in joint events or church life but are unable to do so. At the
same time, over a fifth of the elderly population were not at
all interested in taking part in joint activities. It is probable
that one cause of the low social activity of the elderly is the
shortage of opportunities aimed at their age group. A third
of the respondents, however, complained about the lack of
relevant information and a quarter reported that they do
not care about participating in events outside their home.
According to the European Social Survey (2004), people’s
activeness in communicating with friends, relatives
and colleagues decreases as they become older and friendship-based
communication is replaced with communication
based on care-related needs. Compared to men, women’s
communication activeness diminishes at a slower rate
because they are also more active in providing non-financial
assistance (e.g. helping friends, neighbours, children, etc.)
and accepting assistance when they are left alone, while men
receive informal assistance primarily from their spouse/
partner and report being left without assistance more often
than women when living alone. Consequently, elderly men’s
quality of life is more dependent on resources within the
household, while women tend to be more efficient in combining
these with resources available outside the household.
Health
People’s functional abilities decrease in old age, but it is the
increasing frequency of health problems that cause health
to be the primary factor affecting elderly people’s quality of
life. One of the most informative indicators for characterizing
the state of health of adults is people’s own assessment of
their health. The percentage of people who rated their health
as good or very good is 3.5–3.9 times higher in Estonia than
that of people who rated their health as bad or very bad (Figure
3.6.1.). The average proportion in the EU was as high as
6.1 (National Health Interview Surveys 2004; Health status…,
EU-SILC online). In older age groups, the difference
between good and bad health ratings decreases both in Estonia
and other EU countries. In Estonia, the number of people
with self-perceived bad health surpasses the number of
people with good health already before the age of 65, while in
the EU, this tendency is apparent only after the age of 75. It
can be concluded that the state of health of the elderly worsens
much more quickly in Estonia than in the EU on average,
thus creating a situation where health is a significant
negative influence on the quality of life of the elderly.
Satisfaction with various aspects
of quality of life
Studies of the satisfaction and subjective well-being of the
elderly have shown that these indicators rely largely on the
health of the respondents and their coping capacities, as
well as the availability of health care and nursing care services
(Bowling & Gabriel 2007). Studies of the elderly conducted
in Estonia revealed that more than two thirds of
people aged 65 and older were generally satisfied with their
lives. Approximately half of the elderly respondents rated
Table 3.6.1. Employment rates in EU member states
and candidate countries, 2002 (%)
Employment
rate
(15–64)
Women’s (15–
64) employment
rate
Source: Eurostat, Statistics Estonia (Tiit et al. 2004).
Employment rate
of the older workforce
(55–64)
Belgium 59.9 51.4 26.6
Denmark 75.9 71.7 57.9
Germany 65.3 58.8 38.6
Greece 56.7 42.5 39.7
Spain 58.4 44.1 39.7
France 63.0 56.7 34.8
Ireland 65.3 55.4 48.1
Italy 55.5 42.0 28.9
Luxembourg 63.7 51.6 28.3
The Netherlands 74.4 66.2 42.3
Austria 69.3 63.1 30.0
Portugal 68.2 60.8 50.9
Finland 68.1 66.2 47.8
Sweden 73.6 72.2 68.0
United Kingdom 71.7 65.3 53.5
EU 15 64.3 55.6 40.1
Cyprus 68.6 59.1 49.4
Czech Republic 65.4 57.0 40.8
Hungary 56.6 50.0 26.6
Lithuania 59.9 57.2 41.6
Latvia 60.4 56.8 41.7
Malta 54.5 33.6 30.3
Poland 51.5 46.2 26.1
Slovenia 63.4 58.6 24.5
Slovakia 56.8 51.4 22.8
Estonia 2002 61.7 57.8 51.5
Estonia 2003 62.6 58.8 52.1
the EU goal for 2010 70 More than 60 50
Figure 3.6.1. Health self-assessment by age groups
in Estonia and the EU, 2004 and 2006
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
EE
2004
EE
2006
EU
2006
Very good/good
Very bad/bad
EE EE EU
65–74 65–74 65–74
2004 2006 2006
EE EE EU
75–84 75–84 75–84
2004 2006 2006
EE EU
85+ 85+
2006 2006
Source: National Health Interview Surveys 2004; Health status…, EU-SILC
online; Saks et al. 2000; Tiit & Saks 2002).
their ability to cope economically as satisfactory or good. A
large segment of the elderly were satisfied or relatively satisfied
with their dwelling and the surrounding area, while a
tenth of the respondents reported dissatisfaction with these
spheres of life. Only a small part of this target group evaluated
the work local governments do with the elderly as good
(11–13%), a large percentage of respondents had no opinion
on it, and the percentage of respondents who were dis-
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