Temperature and life satisfaction: Evidence from Chinese older adults

We employ detailed monthly temperature data and a nationally representative survey of Chinese older adults to examine the effects of exposure to high temperature on older adults' life satisfaction. A large literature evaluates the objective damage of climate change, but less attention has been paid to subjective well-being of the older population. Given the widely documented distinction of experienced and decision utilities and the trend of global aging, we offer another angle for evaluating the damage of climate change. Our results consistently show that exposure to (extreme) high temperatures significantly lower the older adults' life satisfaction. We link the adaptability of older adults to their life-course experiences and find that early-life resources can be as important as adult-life resources for older adults to adapt to late-life high temperatures. We document both efficiency and equality implications of climate change on the older population.