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Subjective socioeconomic status and health in cross-national comparison

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  • Präg, Patrick
  • Mills, Melinda C.
  • Wittek, Rafael

Abstract

Research has established a robust association between subjective socioeconomic status (SES) and health outcomes, which holds over and above the associations between objective markers of SES and health. Furthermore, comparative research on health inequalities has shown considerable variation in the relationship between different objective markers of SES and health across countries. Drawing on data from 29 countries, we present the first cross-national study on the subjective SES–health relationship. For two health outcomes, namely self-rated health (SRH) and psychological wellbeing, we are able to confirm that subjective SES is related to health in all countries under study, even when income, education, and occupational prestige are accounted for. Furthermore, we document considerable variation in the strength of the subjective SES–health association across countries. This variation however is largely independent of country differences in income inequality and country affluence. The health benefits of a high subjective SES appear to be slightly larger in more affluent countries, but only for SRH, not for psychological wellbeing.

Suggested Citation

  • Präg, Patrick & Mills, Melinda C. & Wittek, Rafael, 2016. "Subjective socioeconomic status and health in cross-national comparison," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 84-92.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:149:y:2016:i:c:p:84-92
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.11.044
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    6. Emma Zang & Anthony R. Bardo, 2019. "Objective and Subjective Socioeconomic Status, Their Discrepancy, and Health: Evidence from East Asia," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 143(2), pages 765-794, June.
    7. Patrick Präg & S. V. Subramanian, 2017. "Educational inequalities in self-rated health across US states and European countries," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 62(6), pages 709-716, July.
    8. Anderson, Austen R. & Fowers, Blaine J., 2020. "Lifestyle behaviors, psychological distress, and well-being: A daily diary study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 263(C).
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    11. Su Jin Kang & Wonseok Seo, 2022. "Do People Determine Their Subjective Socioeconomic Status Based on the Housing Type and Residential Neighborhood? Empirical Evidence from Seoul," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-22, November.
    12. Matthew A. Andersson, 2018. "An Odd Ladder to Climb: Socioeconomic Differences Across Levels of Subjective Social Status," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 136(2), pages 621-643, April.
    13. Nolan, Brian & Weisstanner, David, 2021. "Rising Income Inequality and Subjective Social Status: The Nuanced Relative Status Decline of the Working Class since the 1980s," INET Oxford Working Papers 2021-09, Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford.
    14. Hong Zou & Qianqian Xiong & Hongwei Xu, 2020. "Does Subjective Social Status Predict Self-Rated Health in Chinese Adults and Why?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 152(2), pages 443-471, November.
    15. Yan, Wenjing & Zhang, Linting & Li, Wenjie & You, Xuqun & Kong, Feng, 2022. "Associations of family subjective socioeconomic status with hedonic and eudaimonic well-being in emerging adulthood: A daily diary study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 298(C).
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    17. Richards, Lindsay & Maharani, Asri & Präg, Patrick, 2023. "Subjective social status and allostatic load among older people in England: A longitudinal analysis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 320(C).

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