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Objectives Ageing is often associated with deteriorating mental and physical health and the need for long-term care, creating a fear of ageing. We investigated what people fear most in terms of disabling chronic diseases and their concerns regarding having long-term illnesses. Methods Data were obtained from an online survey of 518 respondents aged 40 years and older residing in Malaysia, which was based on a convenience sample collected in May 2015 to January 2016. Data were analyzed using chi-squared tests and multinomial logistic regression. Results Of the most dreaded diseases, heart disease and cancer are life-threatening; however, dementia, diabetes, and hypertension persist and have a disabling effect for a long time. While there were variations in the diseases feared most across sex, ethnicity, and place of residence, the biggest worry for all respondents with regard to having a long-term illness was that they would become a burden to their family, a concern that superseded fear of dying. Conclusions We found our survey respondents had a fear of chronic diseases and placing a burden on others. Thus, there is a need to provide motivation for people to adopt a healthy lifestyle, to remain healthy.

The rapid aging of Malaysia's population is a critical social phenomenon that warrants an in-depth investigation. Understanding the subjective well-being (SWB) of older persons is crucial for sound policymaking in aging societies. The existing literature emphasizes the importance of including noneconomic factors to understand one’s well-being holistically. The current study uses data from the Malaysia Ageing and Retirement Survey (MARS) to investigate the satisfaction with their lives using arrays of variables, including demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, living arrangements, social engagement, and health. The analysis revealed that the SWB increases with age after the age of 40 until approximately 77.5 years old. The results showed that some factors influence SWB of older persons differently by living arrangements and gender. A negative association was found between being employed and SWB of older male persons living alone and between participating in family activities and SWB of older female persons living alone, as those activities could increase distress in their lives. Social activities such as social outing were found to enhance SWB of older persons. For those living with a spouse only, having difficulties with ADL negatively affects the SWB. The findings of this study underscore the importance of catering to older persons with different living arrangements and genders to ensure the most effective and efficient support for older persons in Malaysia.

This paper uses two methodologies to explore the extent to which greater labor force participation among older Malaysians can expand Malaysia’s labor supply. The Milligan–Wise method estimates the potential to increase the labor force participation rate of older Malaysians by estimating how much they would work if they were to work as much as those with the same mortality rate in the past. The Cutler, Meara, and Richards-Shubik ( 2013 ) method estimates the same potential by estimating how much older Malaysians would work if they worked as much as their younger counterparts in similar health. We made further simulations to quantify the capacity of older Malaysians to work after they are 60 years old. The results show significant additional work capacity among older people in Malaysia, particularly males, urban dwellers, and those with low educational attainment.

Background Population ageing is a global phenomenon that resulted from the demographic transition. Senescence leads to increasing dependency on carrying out Activities of Daily Living (ADL). Limitations in ADL impact not only the individual but also the society through higher demand for social and health care services. Thus, this study aims to describe the prevalence of ADL limitation and determine factors associated with transition from independence to ADL limitation among community-dwelling older adults in Malaysia. Methods A prospective cohort study using data from 2275 adults aged 60 and above from the Malaysia Ageing and Retirement Survey, was conducted. Respondents were categorised into independent and with ADL limitation, defined as the inability to carry out at least one ADL item, measured using items adapted from the Barthel’s index. Those who were independent at baseline were followed up three years later to determine their ADL limitation status. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess whether sociodemographic and health factors such as age, sex, education attainment, multimorbidity, cognition, level of physical activity, health status, and body mass index (BMI) predicted the transition from independence to ADL limitation. Results The baseline prevalence of ADL limitation was 15.7%. Among those who were independent at baseline, 8.2% developed ADL limitation at follow-up. Increasing age, female sex, poor health status, lower levels of physical activity, and abnormal BMI were predictors of transition from independence to ADL limitation at follow-up (AUC = 0.83). Conclusions The prevalence of ADL limitation among community-dwelling older adults in Malaysia was comparable to the other reported figures. Lower levels of physical activity and abnormal BMI were two modifiable predictors of transition to ADL limitation among independent older adults. As such, policy strategies to further enhance active lifestyles and maintain normal BMI levels, especially among independent older adults, should be explored.

While the establishment of provident fund is mainly to ensure retirees to be financially secured in old age, pre-retirement withdrawals are commonly permitted for various purposes. These withdrawals had been identified as one of the main causes for low accumulated savings. Using a longitudinal administrative dataset, the paper explored the withdrawal patterns among members of the Malaysian Employees Provident Fund and how much savings would be increased should there be no withdrawal allowed. Based on transaction records from 2002 until 2012, it was found that withdrawal varies by type of withdrawal and age. Preventing withdrawal would increase RM18, 384.10 in median savings. Data indicate that the amount of increment increases with age, however, more than 80% of the members would have an increase in savings of not more than RM50, 000. While the amount of increment in savings is found to be low, other forms of withdrawal should not be permitted if the EPF savings is to ensure financial security in retirement.

Mathematics learning and achievement is one area of research that has gained momentum in recent years because of its importance as a subject in the school curriculum and its usefulness as a prerequisite for developing the quantitative and analytical skills. However, studies on factors affecting mathematics achievement in Malaysia are limited both in terms of the number as well as the scope. It is the aim of this study to take a closer look at the relationship between student and background factors and mathematics achievement among secondary school students in Malaysia using the most recent Trend in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2007 data. The results suggested that female, educational resources, students' attitude, homework and school environment have significant positive effect on mathematics performance. The two factors having opposite effects are age of the students and language spoken at home. Mathematics performance is found to decrease with increasing age and students who did not speak the language of the test at home have significantly higher scores than those who did. These results have important implications especially for educators and policy makers as well. (Contains 6 tables.)

This study investigates the determinants of domestic violence, which is often unseen, and is a widespread form of gender-based violence affecting women the world over. The analysis is limited to the household impact in examining how demographic and marital capital factors relate to domestic violence in Malaysia. Empirical evidence used in this study is based on secondary data obtained from Women’s Aid Organisation’s case files. Results indicate three variables, specifically the perpetrator’s age, the survivor’s income status, and the number of children, show a significant link to the level of violence in a household.

A prospective cohort study using data from 2275 adults aged 60 and above from the Malaysia Ageing and Retirement Survey, was conducted. Respondents were categorised into independent and with ADL limitation, defined as the inability to carry out at least one ADL item, measured using items adapted from the Barthel's index. Those who were independent at baseline were followed up three years later to determine their ADL limitation status. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess whether sociodemographic and health factors such as age, sex, education attainment, multimorbidity, cognition, level of physical activity, health status, and body mass index (BMI) predicted the transition from independence to ADL limitation. The baseline prevalence of ADL limitation was 15.7%. Among those who were independent at baseline, 8.2% developed ADL limitation at follow-up. Increasing age, female sex, poor health status, lower levels of physical activity, and abnormal BMI were predictors of transition from independence to ADL limitation at follow-up (AUC = 0.83). The prevalence of ADL limitation among community-dwelling older adults in Malaysia was comparable to the other reported figures. Lower levels of physical activity and abnormal BMI were two modifiable predictors of transition to ADL limitation among independent older adults. As such, policy strategies to further enhance active lifestyles and maintain normal BMI levels, especially among independent older adults, should be explored.

Our 2008 survey of undergraduate students at the University of Malaya found that most tend to interact with course mates and friends from their own ethnic group. Students from multi-ethnic neighbourhoods and those who do not have language barriers are more likely to communicate and study with course mates from another group, especially when they are taking the same courses. Those who perceive other ethnic groups favourably are also more likely to interact with them academically and socially. Consistent with the socialisation theory, the level of inter-ethnic interaction among undergraduates is higher than that of secondary school students. There seems to be some improvement in inter-ethnic interaction among UM students since 2002. Students' perception of ethnic relations has also become more positive and almost all of them are in agreement that ethnic relations are very important for national development. Nevertheless, there are some 'exclusionists' among students, who would not accept the 'out-group' as neighbour or colleague. Hence, more efforts are needed to achieve the goal of the Prime Minister to unite all Malaysians under the 1Malaysia framework. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

Factors affecting psychosocial well-being of individuals (n = 2,231) >60 years of age (mean = 68 years) in Malaysia were identified using data from the Malaysia Ageing and Retirement Survey (2018-2019). Psychosocial well-being was measured using eight and nine statements on positive and negative outlooks on life respectively, with each statement scored on a 5-point Likert scale (score range = 17-85). Cronbach's alpha value was 0.851, indicative of high consistency. Composite psychosocial well-being indicator had a mean (SD) and median (95% confidence interval) score of 67.2 (9.9) and 68.0 (66.7-67.6) respectively. Significant factors associated with positive psychosocial well-being are rural residence, being married or never married, secondary or higher education level, good self-rated health, ability to perform activities of daily living, financial independence, and having monetary support, a loving family and caring friends. These findings should be considered in future initiatives to improve psychosocial well-being of the elderly in Malaysia.