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Socioeconomic position, social mobility, and health selection effects on allostatic load in the United States

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  • Alexi Gugushvili
  • Grzegorz Bulczak
  • Olga Zelinska
  • Jonathan Koltai

Abstract

The contemporaneous association between higher socioeconomic position and better health is well established. Life course research has also demonstrated a lasting effect of childhood socioeconomic conditions on adult health and well-being. Yet, little is known about the separate health effects of intergenerational mobility—moving into a different socioeconomic position than one’s parents—among early adults in the United States. Most studies on the health implications of mobility rely on cross-sectional datasets, which makes it impossible to differentiate between health selection and social causation effects. In addition, understanding the effects of social mobility on health at a relatively young age has been hampered by the paucity of health measures that reliably predict disease onset. Analysing 4,713 respondents aged 25 to 32 from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health’s Waves I and IV, we use diagonal reference models to separately identify the effects of socioeconomic origin and destination, as well as social mobility on allostatic load among individuals in the United States. Using a combined measure of educational and occupational attainment, and accounting for individuals’ initial health, we demonstrate that in addition to health gradient among the socially immobile, individuals’ socioeconomic origin and destination are equally important for multi-system physiological dysregulation. Short-range upward mobility also has a positive and significant association with health. After mitigating health selection concerns in our observational data, this effect is observed only among those reporting poor health before experiencing social mobility. Our findings move towards the reconciliation of two theoretical perspectives, confirming the positive effect of upward mobility as predicted by the “rags to riches” perspective, while not contradicting potential costs associated with more extensive upward mobility experiences as predicted by the dissociative thesis.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexi Gugushvili & Grzegorz Bulczak & Olga Zelinska & Jonathan Koltai, 2021. "Socioeconomic position, social mobility, and health selection effects on allostatic load in the United States," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(8), pages 1-22, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0254414
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0254414
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mark Hayward & Bridget Gorman, 2004. "The long arm of childhood: The influence of early-life social conditions on men’s mortality," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 41(1), pages 87-107, February.
    2. Sanna Tiikkaja & Sven Sandin & Ninoa Malki & Bitte Modin & Pär Sparén & Christina M Hultman, 2013. "Social Class, Social Mobility and Risk of Psychiatric Disorder - A Population-Based Longitudinal Study," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(11), pages 1-1, November.
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    1. Gugushvili, Alexi & Zelinska, Olga & Präg, Patrick & Bulczak, Grzegorz, 2022. "Does perceived social mobility affect health? Evidence from a fixed effects approach," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 294(C).
    2. Grzegorz Bulczak & Alexi Gugushvili & Olga Zelinska, 2022. "How are social origin, destination and mobility linked to physical, mental, and self-rated health? Evidence from the United States," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 56(5), pages 3555-3585, October.
    3. Klara Gurzo & Bitte Modin & Pekka Martikainen & Olof Östergren, 2022. "Pathways from Childhood Economic Conditions to Adult Mortality in a 1953 Stockholm Cohort: The Intermediate Role of Personal Attributes and Socioeconomic Career," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-15, June.

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