Moreover, elderly women are far more likely than elderly men to live alone. In addition, elderly women are far more likely than their male counterparts to be poor or nearly poor. While women made up 58 percent of elderly Americans in 1990, they comprised nearly 75 percent of the impoverished elderly. Nearly one in three elderly women had an income less than 150 percent of the poverty level. Furthermore, among older women, poverty is disproportionately concentrated among those living alone and minority groups.
Poverty has a direct effect on health.
The situation of elderly women globally is not better. These support structures are sensitive to social change. As a consequence, many widows in developing countries face unanticipated problems when they discover that the social framework they had counted on to protect them is no longer in place. Supporting Vocational Identity. Finally, serious illness, disability or even old age can trigger a crisis of identity and, ultimately, a crisis of faith.