Examining the Relationship between Age, Cash Transfers, Loneliness, and Work Participation Decisions of Elderly People in Malaysia

Objective – The enlargement of the ageing population in Malaysia at an expeditious speed has sparked great concerns of many parties. It is anticipated that Malaysia will become an ‘aged nation’ by 2030 as predicted by many statisticians. This study attempted to provide insights into policy design to create a sustainable community for elderly people in Malaysia, which is in line with one of the 17 SDGs, i.e., SDG-11. Methodology – Productive and healthy ageing is the key to form a sustainable community for elderly people. This research offers an in-depth examination of the interconnections among loneliness, intergenerational financial support, and demographic factors as they influence the employment decision-making processes of elderly people in Malaysia. Findings – Through an analysis of the interplay between these elements, our study sheds light on the intricate factors that contribute to the labour force participation of the elderly, enhancing our comprehension of the multifaceted nature of elder employment trends within the nation. To examine and compare the relationship, univariate, bivariate and logistic regression analyses were employed. Novelty – All analyses showed all explanatory variables in this study are significantly related to the labour force participation of elderly men. In the case of elderly women, the loneliness status variable is not significant. There are some limitations acknowledged in this study that limit the study’s findings, and few suggestions for the future study were provided at the end of this study. Type of Paper: Empirical JEL Classification: 14, J18, J22 Keywords: elderly people; gender differences; intergenerational cash transfer; labour force participation; loneliness; sustainability Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Chung, C.F.; Voo, I.C.; Hamid, R.A. (2024). Examining the Relationship between Age, Cash Transfers, Loneliness, and Work Participation Decision of Elderly People in Malaysia, J. Bus. Econ. Review, 9(1), 55–62. https://doi.org/10.35609/jber.2024.9.1(2)