Health Is Not Equal for All: Geographies of Older Adults’ Well-Being in Italy. A Multidimensional Analysis of Life Satisfaction, Health Conditions, and Socio-Health Performance across Italian Territories

Giuseppe Venere , University of Bari Aldo Moro

Within the background of population ageing, studies of subjective well-being in old age have gained growing importance for social and health sciences. Mere longevity is not enough to ensure a high quality of life: interpersonal relationships, economic provision, and access to responsive territorial health care services are the principal determinants of healthy ageing. This study examines to what extent individual determinants—subjective health, social support network, and economic security—interact with regional healthcare performance in shaping life satisfaction and perceived health among Italy's elderly. The research used microdata of the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) survey Aspects of Daily Life (2023) on 10,700 individuals aged 65 and older, and regional health performance data on the 2025 Essential Levels of Care (LEA) report, aggregated through Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Two Generalized Ordered Logistic Regressions are estimated to investigate: (1) life satisfaction (recoded on a 1–10 scale into five ordered categories), and (2) self-rated health from "very poor" to "very good". Collinearity and multicollinearity were checked using Spearman's rho and VIF statistics. Findings indicate that perceived health is the highest and most significant predictor of life satisfaction (p < 0.001), while family relationships and perceived economic security are significant specifically at intermediate cut-offs. For predicting perceived health, regional healthcare performance (LEA index) and subjective economic conditions are most significant explanatory factors, particularly at the uppermost level of perceived well-being—emphasizing the structural and territorial inequalities' contribution to ageing outcomes.

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 Presented in Session 110. Geography, Environment and the Role of Place in Health