This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Quality of life for Americans 65 and older increased over the past decade, according to new research from Shatakshee Dhongde in Georgia Tech's School of Economics. Dhongde measured the quality of life among older Americans using a multidimensional well-being index she pioneered.
For this study, Dhongde weighed four factors: income, housing costs, disabilities and digital access. "Disadvantages tend to overlap, and their cumulative effects can be more severe than experiencing each one on its own," Dhongde said. "By weighing them together, policymakers can identify people experiencing clusters of disadvantages and provide more targeted interventions." Dhongde's paper, published in The Review of Income and Wealth in May 2026, finds: Dhongde notes that the choice of well-being indicators was constrained by data limitations in the American Community Survey.
The study also couldn't track the benefits seniors who own their homes outright receive, and it doesn't include residents of group homes. Still, this research is important because 55 million Americans are 65 and older, according to the 2020 U.S. census, and this group is growing five times faster than the total population. Yet, it has the lowest well-being index overall.
So policies to improve the well-being of older Americans can have a wide-reaching impact. Dhongde's research provides a benchmark for measuring improvements and helping policymakers pinpoint the most effective interventions. "The number of older Americans in the U.S. is growing rapidly, but there is little research into their quality of life," Dhongde said.
"This work finds that well-being indicators are not highly correlated, so measuring just one, such as income, does not give us a full picture. As the well-being of older Americans increases, the goal is to help continue that momentum." Shatakshee Dhongde, Multidimensional Well‐Being Among Older Adults in the United States, Review of Income and Wealth (2026). DOI: 10.1111/roiw.70081 Provided by Georgia Institute of Technology Swati Mestri holds a bachelor's degree in Electronics Engineering and has worked as a content editor since 2019.
She has experience editing research documents across technology, health care, and materials science, and has a particular interest in technology and space. Full profile → Master's in physics with research experience. Long-time science news enthusiast.
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