Abstract
We examined gender differences in the association between migration status (urban, rural, urban-to-urban, rural-to-urban, rural-to-rural, and urban-to-rural) and cognition among adults in China and India. We used the World Health Organization Study on global AGEing and adult health (SAGE) data that included adults age 50 + from China (N=12937) and India (N=6244). Controlling for socioeconomic status and health conditions, significant differences in cognition were found between men and women, and across migration groups. A consistent female disadvantage was found in China and India for cognition. Women who were rural residents or rural-to-rural migrants had the poorest cognition in both Chinese and Indian samples. Among males in China, rural residents had poorer cognition than urban residents, while urban-to-urban migrants had highest cognition scores; however, for male counterparts in India, rural-to-rural migrants had the poorest cognition. The results suggest that the association between migration and cognition differs by gender and country.