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"The Better You Feel, the Harder You Fall": Health Perception Biases and Mental Health among Chinese Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic

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  • Nie, Peng

    (Xi’an Jiaotong University)

  • Wang, Lu

    (Xi’an Jiaotong University)

  • Dragone, Davide

    (University of Bologna)

  • Lu, Haiyang

    (Southwestern University of Finance and Economics)

  • Sousa-Poza, Alfonso

    (University of Hohenheim)

  • Ziebarth, Nicolas R.

    (ZEW)

Abstract

The health risks of the current COVID-19 pandemic, together with the drastic mitigation measures taken in many affected nations, pose an obvious threat to public mental health. The social science literature has already established a clear link between mental health and sociodemographic as well as economic factors, and a growing number of studies investigate the role of biased risk perceptions. To assess this role in the context of COVID-19, this study first implements survey-based measures of over- and underconfidence in the health self-perceptions among Chinese adults during the pandemic. Then, it analyzes their relation to three mental health outcomes: life satisfaction, happiness, and depression (as measured by the CES−D). We show that the health overconfidence displayed by approximately 30% of the survey respondents is a clear risk factor for mental health problems; it is a statistically significant predictor of depression and low levels of happiness and life satisfaction. We also document that these effects are stronger in regions that experienced higher numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths. Recent research has shown that health overconfidence can influence risky behaviors such as smoking and excessive alcohol consumption, which may be particularly detrimental during a pandemic. Our results also offer clear guidelines for the implementation of effective interventions to temper overconfidence, particularly in uncontrollable situations like the COVID-19 pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Nie, Peng & Wang, Lu & Dragone, Davide & Lu, Haiyang & Sousa-Poza, Alfonso & Ziebarth, Nicolas R., 2021. ""The Better You Feel, the Harder You Fall": Health Perception Biases and Mental Health among Chinese Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IZA Discussion Papers 14905, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
  • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp14905
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    2. Nie, Peng & Peng, Xu & Luo, Tianyuan, 2023. "Internet use and fertility behavior among reproductive-age women in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    China; mental health; health perception bias; overconfidence; underconfidence; COVID-19;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • P46 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Other Economic Systems - - - Consumer Economics; Health; Education and Training; Welfare, Income, Wealth, and Poverty

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