IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/pst/wpaper/333.html

School selectivity and mental health: Evidence from regression discontinuity design

Author

Listed:
  • Tiina Kuuppelomäki

Abstract

The school environment forms a large part of adolescents’ lives and can thus have a large impact on their mental health. However, fairly little is known on the specific impact of school characteristics, such as selectivity. In this paper, comprehensive Finnish register data is used to investigate how studying at a more selective, preferred upper secondary school affects students’short- and long-term mental health. A regression discontinuity design is employed for the analysis, finding that, while access to more selective school has little overall effect on individual’s short- or long-term mental health, it does have positive effects during the time of matriculation examinations. Further analysis also reveals heterogeneity based on the selectivity difference between the preferred school and next-best alternative.

Suggested Citation

  • Tiina Kuuppelomäki, 2021. "School selectivity and mental health: Evidence from regression discontinuity design," Working Papers 333, Työn ja talouden tutkimus LABORE, The Labour Institute for Economic Research LABORE.
    • Handle: RePEc:pst:wpaper:333
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://labore.fi/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Tyopapereita-333.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2021
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chevalier, Arnaud & Feinstein, Leon, 2006. "Sheepskin or Prozac: The Causal Effect of Education on Mental Health," IZA Discussion Papers 2231, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Avendano, M.; de Coulon, A.; Nafilyan, V.;, 2017. "Does more education always improve mental health? Evidence from a British compulsory schooling reform," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 17/10, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
    3. Huttunen, Kristiina & Pekkarinen, Tuomas & Uusitalo, Roope & Virtanen, Hanna, 2018. "Lost Boys: Access to Secondary Education and Crime," Working Papers 114, VATT Institute for Economic Research.
    4. Bütikofer, Aline & Ginja, Rita & Landaud, Fanny & Løken, Katrine V., 2020. "School Selectivity, Peers, and Mental Health," Working Papers in Economics 5/20, University of Bergen, Department of Economics.
    5. Sebastian Calonico & Matias D. Cattaneo & Max H. Farrell & Roc ́ıo Titiunik, 2017. "rdrobust: Software for regression-discontinuity designs," Stata Journal, StataCorp LLC, vol. 17(2), pages 372-404, June.
    6. McCrary, Justin, 2008. "Manipulation of the running variable in the regression discontinuity design: A density test," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 142(2), pages 698-714, February.
    7. Crespo, Laura & López-Noval, Borja & Mira, Pedro, 2014. "Compulsory schooling, education, depression and memory: New evidence from SHARELIFE," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 36-46.
    8. Lundborg, Petter & Nilsson, Anton & Rooth, Dan-Olof, 2014. "Adolescent health and adult labor market outcomes," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 25-40.
    9. Cristian Pop-Eleches & Miguel Urquiola, 2013. "Going to a Better School: Effects and Behavioral Responses," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 103(4), pages 1289-1324, June.
    10. Groot, Wim & Maassen van den Brink, Henriette, 2007. "The health effects of education," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(2), pages 186-200, April.
    11. Atila Abdulkadiroğlu & Joshua Angrist & Parag Pathak, 2014. "The Elite Illusion: Achievement Effects at Boston and New York Exam Schools," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 82(1), pages 137-196, January.
    12. Leigh, J. Paul, 1983. "Direct and indirect effects of education on health," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 17(4), pages 227-234, January.
    13. Adriana Lleras-Muney, 2005. "The Relationship Between Education and Adult Mortality in the United States," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 72(1), pages 189-221.
    14. Hartog, Joop & Oosterbeek, Hessel, 1998. "Health, wealth and happiness: why pursue a higher education?," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 17(3), pages 245-256, June.
    15. Pastore, Chiara & Jones, Andrew M., 2023. "Human capital consequences of missing out on a grammar school education," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bütikofer, Aline & Ginja, Rita & Landaud, Fanny & Løken, Katrine V., 2020. "School Selectivity, Peers, and Mental Health," Working Papers in Economics 5/20, University of Bergen, Department of Economics.
    2. Cáceres-Delpiano, Julio & Giolito, Eugenio, 2018. "Minimum Age Requirements and the Impact of School Choice," IZA Discussion Papers 11420, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Li, Yanan & Sunder, Naveen, 2024. "Distributional effects of education on mental health," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    4. Pastore, Chiara & Jones, Andrew M., 2023. "Human capital consequences of missing out on a grammar school education," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    5. Dahmann, Sarah C. & Schnitzlein, Daniel D., 2019. "No evidence for a protective effect of education on mental health," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    6. Avendano, Mauricio & de Coulon, Augustin & Nafilyan, Vahé, 2020. "Does longer compulsory schooling affect mental health? Evidence from a British reform," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    7. Margherita Fort & Andrea Ichino & Enrico Rettore & Giulio Zanella, 2022. "Multicutoff RD designs with observations located at each cutoff: problems and solutions," FBK-IRVAPP Working Papers 2022-01, Research Institute for the Evaluation of Public Policies (IRVAPP), Bruno Kessler Foundation.
    8. Atı̇la Abdulkadı̇roğlu & Joshua D. Angrist & Yusuke Narita & Parag Pathak, 2022. "Breaking Ties: Regression Discontinuity Design Meets Market Design," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 90(1), pages 117-151, January.
    9. Diether W Beuermann & C Kirabo Jackson & Laia Navarro-Sola & Francisco Pardo, 2023. "What is a Good School, and Can Parents Tell? Evidence on the Multidimensionality of School Output," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 90(1), pages 65-101.
    10. Kirkebøen, Lars & Leuven, Edwin & Mogstad, Magne, 2014. "Field of Study, Earnings, and Self-Selection," Memorandum 29/2014, Oslo University, Department of Economics.
    11. Dee, Thomas & Lan, Xiaohuan, 2015. "The achievement and course-taking effects of magnet schools: Regression-discontinuity evidence from urban China," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 128-142.
    12. Estrada, Ricardo & Gignoux, Jérémie & Hatrick, Agustina, 2021. "Learning About Opportunity: Spillovers of Elite School Admissions in Peru," Research Department working papers 1708, CAF Development Bank Of Latinamerica.
    13. Quis, Johanna Sophie & Reif, Simon, 2017. "Health effects of instruction intensity: Evidence from a natural experiment in German high-schools," BERG Working Paper Series 123, Bamberg University, Bamberg Economic Research Group.
    14. Gorman, Emma & Walker, Ian, 2021. "Heterogeneous effects of missing out on a place at a preferred secondary school in England," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    15. Jiang, Wei & Lu, Yi & Xie, Huihua, 2020. "Education and mental health: Evidence and mechanisms," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 180(C), pages 407-437.
    16. Fusejima, Koki & Ishihara, Takuya & Sawada, Masayuki, 2025. "A unified test for regression discontinuity designs," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 251(C).
    17. Stenberg, Anders & Tudor, Simona, 2023. "Field of Study and Mental Health in Adulthood," SOFI Working Papers in Labour Economics 1/2024, Stockholm University, Swedish Institute for Social Research.
    18. Luflade, Margaux & Zaiem, Meryam, 2024. "Do elite schools improve students performance? Evidence from Tunisia," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    19. Miguel Urquiola, 2015. "Progress and challenges in achieving an evidence-based education policy in Latin America and the Caribbean," Latin American Economic Review, Springer;Centro de Investigaciòn y Docencia Económica (CIDE), vol. 24(1), pages 1-30, December.
    20. Quis, Johanna Sophie & Mehl, Simon, 2018. "Health Effects of Instruction Intensity: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in German High-Schools," VfS Annual Conference 2018 (Freiburg, Breisgau): Digital Economy 181619, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pst:wpaper:333. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Aila Mustonen (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/laborfi.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.