How are the employed and unemployed affected by the economic crisis in Spain? Educational inequalities, life conditions and mental health in a context of high unemployment

Córdoba-Doña, Juan Antonio; Escolar-Pujolar, Antonio; Sebastián, Miguel San; Gustafsson, Per E.

doi:10.1186/s12889-016-2934-z

Cited by 36 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 31 publications

(33 reference statements)

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“…The remaining 40 studies use data from one country, the clear majority from Spain (N=16). 54,59,63,65,67,68,70,73,74,81,85,94,96,[98][99][100] A handful of studies are performed in the UK/England (N=6), 52,53,62,72,75,84 Greece (N=5), 55,56,71,76,82 Italy (N=4), 83,88,89,97 and Iceland (N=3), 57,60,69 while the remaining countries are represented once. 61,77,78,86,90,92 Note that some studies do not use national data, but rather regional/citywide data materials (N=6).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Socioeconomic inequalities in health during the Great Recession: A scoping review of the research literature

Heggebø

Tøge²,

Dahl

et al. 2018

Scand J Public Health

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Aims: The so-called ‘Great Recession’ in Europe triggered widespread concerns about population health, as reflected by an upsurge in empirical research on the health impacts of the economic crisis. A growing body of empirical studies has also been devoted to socioeconomic inequalities in health during the Great Recession. The aim of the current study is to summarise this health inequality literature by means of a scoping review. Methods: We have performed a scoping review of the research literature (English language) published in the years 2012–2017. Only empirical papers with (a) health status measured on the individual level, (b) information on socioeconomic position (i.e. employment status, educational level, income/wealth, and/or occupational class), and (c) data from European countries in both pre- and post-crisis years were considered relevant. In total, 49 empirical studies fulfilled these inclusion criteria. Results: The empirical findings in the 49 included studies predominantly show that socioeconomic inequalities in health either increased or remained stable from pre- to post-crisis years. Two-thirds (65%) of the studies found evidence of either increasing or partially increasing health inequalities. Thus, people in lower socioeconomic strata fared worse overall in terms of health during the Great Recession, compared to people with higher socioeconomic status. Conclusions: The Great Recession in Europe tends to be followed by increasing socioeconomic inequalities in health. Policymakers should take note of this finding. Widening socioeconomic inequalities in health is a major cause of concern, in particular if health deterioration among ‘vulnerable groups’ is caused by accelerating cumulative disadvantages.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Socioeconomic inequalities in health during the Great Recession: A scoping review of the research literature

Heggebø

Tøge²,

Dahl

et al. 2018

Scand J Public Health

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show abstract

“…Depression worsened especially among men of working age [32] and among workers [28], and has been associated with financial problems arising from the crisis [33]. This suggests that the causative factor is the labour market and unemployment, and therefore health policies would not appear to be responsible.…”

Section: The Impact On Health Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Economic Crisis, Austerity Policies, Health and Fairness: Lessons Learned in Spain

López-Valcarcel

Pérez

2016

Appl Health Econ Health Policy

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This paper reviews economic and medical research publications to determine the extent to which the measures applied in Spain to control public health spending following the economic and financial crisis that began in 2008 have affected healthcare utilization, health and fairness within the public healthcare system. The majority of the studies examined focus on the most controversial cutbacks that came into force in mid-2012. The conclusions drawn, in general, are inconclusive. The consequences of this new policy of healthcare austerity are apparent in terms of access to the system but no systematic effects on the health of the general population are reported. Studies based on indicators of premature mortality, avoidable mortality or self-perceived health have not found clear negative effects of the crisis on public health. The increased demands for co-payment provoked a short-term cutback in the consumption of medicines, but this effect faded after 12-18 months. No deterioration in the health of immigrants after the onset of the crisis was unambigously detected. The impact of the recession in the general population in diseases associated with mental health is well documented, although the high levels of unemployment are identified as direct causes, and therefore it is social policies rather than measures affecting the healthcare system that would be primarily responsible. In addition, some health problems have a clear social dimension, which seems to have become more acute during the crisis, affecting in particular the most vulnerable population groups and the most disadvantaged social classes, thus widening the inequality gap. 3 Key points for decision makers Some health problems have a clear social dimension, which seems to have become more acute during the crisis  The public health system has borne a disproportionate share of the burden of spending cuts provoked by the crisis, but it has managed to avoid irreversible deterioration. The most tangible consequences of healthcare spending cuts and austerity measures concern problems of access to health care, both for specific population groups (undocumented immigrants) and for patients in general (longer waiting lists). The studies have common limitations: use of cross-sectional data and no consideration of lags between the cause (economic recession) and its effects (mortality, morbidity). In order to better estimate the effects of the crisis on health population, up-to-date data of cohorts from clinical records and registries would be needed. No attempt has been made in Spain so far to reform the health system with a view to achieving its long-term sustainability, in response to the 2008 recession and for preventing future recessions

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“…The results of the current study are in line with previous observations about the impact of economic recessions on The covariates include having a spouse and paid job, household spending, and regional areas. [5][6][7][8] as well as the disadvantage of the EIA cohort in terms of job status and wage earnings in Japan. 20 The results are also consistent with previous observations in Japan, 33 which confirmed that starting working life with a precarious job status tends to result in lower SES and poorer health outcomes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[1][2][3][4] The possible key channels that link macroeconomic conditions and individual health include employment and financial strain; higher chances of unemployment and reduced income may raise health risks, especially among socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals. [5][6][7][8] Studies also observed the widening socioeconomic inequalities regarding health during the economic crisis, indicating that economic shocks have a stronger impact on socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals. [9][10][11] Most preceding studies have compared population health during the pre-and post-crisis periods or focused on changes in population health during the crisis, 12,13 leaving the lingering impact of the economic crisis largely understudied.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lingering Impact of Starting Working Life During a Recession: Health Outcomes of Survivors of the “Employment Ice Age” (1993–2004) in Japan

Oshio

2020

Journal of Epidemiology

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Background: A growing amount of evidence demonstrates the adverse impacts of economic downturns on population health.However, the extent to which the macroeconomic conditions at labor market entry affect health outcomes in later life remains relatively understudied. This study focused on the health outcomes of the cohort who entered the labor market during the "employment ice age" (EIA;1993-2004 in Japan, when young people had difficulty finding jobs after graduating from college or high school. Methods: We used repeated cross-sectional data (N = 3,054,782; 1,500,618 men and 1,554,164 women) obtained from an 11wave population-based nationwide survey conducted every 3 years from 1986 through 2016. We considered three health outcomes: being in hospital, subjective symptoms, and self-rated health (SRH). We employed two types of statistical analyses: an age-period-cohort (APC) analysis, which controlled for age and period (wave) effects, and a difference-in-differences (DiD) analysis, in which the EIA experience was regarded as a treatment. Results: The APC analysis confirmed the relative disadvantage of the EIA cohort for all three outcomes; for instance, the odds ratio of poor SRH for the EIA cohort was 1.29 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.21-1.38) for men and 1.25 (95% CI, 1.17-1.34) for women. The DiD analysis confirmed the robustness of these results, especially for men. Conclusions: The results underscored the lingering impact of the macroeconomic conditions at labor market entry on health outcomes in later life in Japan.

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How are the employed and unemployed affected by the economic crisis in Spain? Educational inequalities, life conditions and mental health in a context of high unemployment

Cited by 36 publications

References 31 publications

Socioeconomic inequalities in health during the Great Recession: A scoping review of the research literature

Socioeconomic inequalities in health during the Great Recession: A scoping review of the research literature

Economic Crisis, Austerity Policies, Health and Fairness: Lessons Learned in Spain

Lingering Impact of Starting Working Life During a Recession: Health Outcomes of Survivors of the “Employment Ice Age” (1993–2004) in Japan

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