The effect of social participation on the subjective and objective health status of the over-fifties: evidence from SHARE

Increasing social participation among older individuals to increase health and wellbeing has become a distinct policy goal of many national governments and the European Commission. However, to date the evidence on how social participation affects health, both subjective and objective, remains limited, especially since most studies do not account for the reciprocal relationship. The aim of this study is to analyse how changes in social participation affect both the subjective and objective health of older Europeans as well as how changes in health status affect social participation. Using longitudinal data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), the results suggest that both the uptake as well as the continuation of social activities increase the chances of improvements in subjective as well as objective health. Furthermore, improvements in self-rated health as well as grip strength significantly increase the chances of taking up new activities as well as continuing with existing ones. Country effect is not as strong as expected and the benefits could be homogeneous across different cultures once we control for socio-economic status. Overall, the results stress the need for taking into account the reciprocal relationship between social participation and health. The paper highlights the importance of focusing on both uptake and continuation of social participation when devising policy aimed at improving healthy ageing

Das Globalisierungsskript der Europäischen Union und seine Unterstützung bei den Bürgerinnen und Bürgern in 15 Mitgliedsländern der EU

Auf der Basis einer Interpretation von Gesetzestexten und öffentlichen Verlautbarungen rekonstruieren wir in einem ersten Schritt die Vorstellungen der Europäischen Union von einer globalisierten Wirtschaft. Die EU verfolgt mit ihren Wirtschaftsvorstellungen und deren Implementierung durch konkrete Politiken das Ziel, Wachstum, Fortschritt und Prosperität für alle Bürger der Mitgliedsländer und für alle Weltbürger zu erzeugen. Dieses Ziel sieht die EU am besten erreichbar, wenn Wettbewerb und die Öffnung von Märkten institutionalisiert werden. Dabei transportiert sie ihre Vorstellungen und Erfahrungen, die im Kontext der Herstellung eines europäischen Wirtschaftsraumes entwickelt wurden auf die Weltgesellschaft insgesamt. Ob diese Sichtweise von den Bürgerinnen und Bürgern der EU geteilt wird, haben wir im zweiten Schritt auf der Grundlage einer Auswertung des Eurobarometers für 15 Länder der EU geprüft. Das Ergebnis ist überraschend: 63 % der befragten EU-Bürger unterstützen die Entwicklung einer ökonomischen Globalisierung durch Marktliberalisierung. Bis auf Griechenland gibt es in allen Ländern eine Mehrheit von Personen, die dem Prozess der Globalisierung positiv gegenüber eingestellt sind. Zugleich fallen die Unterstützungsraten zwischen den Ländern und innerhalb der Länder recht unterschiedlich aus. Zur Erklärung dieser Unterschiede sind wir von der Annahme ausgegangen, dass diejenigen, die durch Globalisierungsprozesse benachteiligt werden, sich eher gegen den Globalisierungsprozess aussprechen als diejenigen, für die dies nicht gilt. „Benachteiligung“ kann sich in drei Dimensionen manifestieren: in der subjektiven Interpretation von positiven und negativen Folgen von Globalisierungsprozessen, in den Nachteilen, die sich aus der objektiven sozialstrukturellen Lage des Individuums ergeben und aus den Nachteilen, die aus der ökonomischen Situation des Landes resultieren. Auch unsere Kausalanalyse kann mit einem überraschenden Befund aufwarten. Zwar können die Einstellungen der Bürger zur Globalisierung recht gut erklärt werden, allerdings spielen die für Soziologen im Zentrum stehenden Variablen dabei fast keine Rolle. Weder die makroökonomische Situation des Landes, noch die sozialstrukturelle Lage des Interviewten haben einen nennenswerten Effekt auf deren Globalisierungseinstellungen. Die Haltung zur Globalisierung wird fast ausschließlich bestimmt durch den subjektiv definierten Globalisierungsnutzen; dieser ist selbst nicht mehr rückgekoppelt an die objektive Lage des Individuums oder des Landes, in dem das Individuum lebt

Are economic recessions at the time of leaving school associated with worse health in later life?

Men who leave school or university during a recession experience better health in later life than men graduating during a boom, while women experience worse health if leaving school or university during a recession

The effect of social participation on the subjective and objective health status of the over-fifties: evidence from SHARE

Increasing social participation among older individuals to increase health and wellbeing has become a distinct policy goal of many national governments and the European Commission. However, to date the evidence on how social participation affects health, both subjective and objective, remains limited, especially since most studies do not account for the reciprocal relationship. The aim of this study is to analyse how changes in social participation affect both the subjective and objective health of older Europeans as well as how changes in health status affect social participation. Using longitudinal data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), the results suggest that both the uptake as well as the continuation of social activities increase the chances of improvements in subjective as well as objective health. Furthermore, improvements in self-rated health as well as grip strength significantly increase the chances of taking up new activities as well as continuing with existing ones. Country effect is not as strong as expected and the benefits could be homogeneous across different cultures once we control for socio-economic status. Overall, the results stress the need for taking into account the reciprocal relationship between social participation and health. The paper highlights the importance of focusing on both uptake and continuation of social participation when devising policy aimed at improving healthy ageing

Determinanten für Einkommensungleichheiten in den Mitgliedsländern der EU 1993 ‐ 2007

Dem Thema Einkommensungleichheit wurde in jüngster Zeit aufgrund steigender Ungleichheit in mehreren OECD-Ländern eine große Aufmerksamkeit zuteil. Als Gründe für den Anstieg wird vielfach der Prozess der Globalisierung ins Spiel gebracht. Weitaus weniger Beachtung wurde hingegen einem anderen Prozess Wirtschaftlicher Integration geschenkt – dem Europäischen Integrationsprozess. Eine Ausnahme bildet eine Studie des amerikanischen Soziologen Jason Beckfield aus dem Jahr 2006 in welcher der Autor einen negativen Effekt sowohl politischer als auch wirtschaftlicher Europäisierung auf Einkommensungleichheiten aufzeigt. Diese Ergebnisse sollen in dieser Studie unter Verwendung von Einkommensangaben für den Zeitraum 1993-2007 für die EU- Staaten repliziert werden. Dabei werden die Annahmen hinsichtlich der beiden Prozesse – Globalisierung sowie Europäisierung – theoretisch und empirisch verknüpft. Die Ergebnisse werden zeigen, dass vor allem der Prozess der Wirtschaftlichen Integration in den EU-Binnenmarkt einen deutlichen Effekt auf die (Einkommens-)Ungleichheit besitzt. Die negativen Auswirkungen Politischer Integration sowie die der Globalisierung werden hingegen nicht bzw. nur teilweise bestätigt.The topic income inequality has recently attracted a lot of attention as a result of increasing inequalities in a number of OECD countries. As reasons for this increase it is often referred the process of globalization. A lot less attention has been given to another process of economic integration – the process of European integration. One exception is the study of the American sociologist Jason Beckfield from the year 2006 in which the author shows a negative effect of both political as well as economic Europeanization on income inequality. These results shall be replicated in this study based on income data from EU member countries for the time period 1993-2007. Thereby the assumptions regarding both processes – Globalization and Europeanization – shall be linked theoretically as well as empirically. The results will indicate that in particular the process of economic integration into the EU’s Common Market has a considerable effect on the income inequality. The negative effects of political integration and globalization are not or only partially supported

Balancing elderly care and employment in Germany

"In this report, we investigate the situation of workers who also care for an elderly parent in Germany. The study is based on qualitative, in depth interviews with care givers who are at least part time employed. The interviews aimed at detecting constrains and resources available to workers with caring responsibilities in the second half of their working life to deal with their multiple responsibilities and demands on their time and attention. This report is one of a series of national reports on the same issue, which are all part of the project 'Workers under pressure and social care' (WOUPS) supported by the French ministry of labour (MIRE) and by the French Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR), coordinated by the department of Ecole nationale de la santé publique at the University in Rennes. Towards this project, we also provided a report on the institutional framework of the German long-term care system, which we only synthetically summarize in the first part of this. The outline of the report is as follows: The first section points to the relevance of balancing employment and informal elderly care in Germany and highlights the peculiarities of elderly care compared to child care. The second section, after a synthetic description of the key elements of the German long term care system, presents an overview, based on existing survey data, of the incidence and characteristics of workers having caring responsibilities towards an adult family member in Germany. The third section describes our sample of carers and evaluates its representativity and possible biases. In the fourth section, we discuss different patterns of work/care arrangements. In the fifth chapter, we analyse the tensions arising in these arrangements with regard both to caring and to gainful employment, paying attention to constrains, but also to the - human and emotional - resources carers are able to mobilize in the various situations. In the following two sections, the conciliation, or balancing, perspective is broadened to include family and friendship relationships as well as time for one's own. In the concluding section, we highlight the most crucial aspects which put care givers in employment under pressure and we describe measures that might ease their situation." (author's abstract

Europäisierung oder Globalisierung von Ungleichheit? Determinanten für Einkommensungleichheiten in den Mitgliedsländern der EU 1993‐2007

"Dem Thema Einkommensungleichheit wurde in jüngster Zeit aufgrund steigender Ungleichheit in mehreren OECD-Ländern eine große Aufmerksamkeit zuteil. Als Gründe für den Anstieg wird vielfach der Prozess der Globalisierung ins Spiel gebracht. Weitaus weniger Beachtung wurde hingegen einem anderen Prozess Wirtschaftlicher Integration geschenkt - dem Europäischen Integrationsprozess. Eine Ausnahme bildet eine Studie des amerikanischen Soziologen Jason Beckfield aus dem Jahr 2006 in welcher der Autor einen negativen Effekt sowohl politischer als auch wirtschaftlicher Europäisierung auf Einkommensungleichheiten aufzeigt. Diese Ergebnisse sollen in dieser Studie unter Verwendung von Einkommensangaben für den Zeitraum 1993-2007 für die EU-Staaten repliziert werden. Dabei werden die Annahmen hinsichtlich der beiden Prozesse - Globalisierung sowie Europäisierung - theoretisch und empirisch verknüpft. Die Ergebnisse werden zeigen, dass vor allem der Prozess der Wirtschaftlichen Integration in den EU-Binnenmarkt einen deutlichen Effekt auf die (Einkommens-)Ungleichheit besitzt. Die negativen Auswirkungen Politischer Integration sowie die der Globalisierung werden hingegen nicht bzw. nur teilweise bestätigt." (Autorenreferat)"The topic income inequality has recently attracted a lot of attention as a result of increasing inequalities in a number of OECD countries. As reasons for this increase it is often referred the process of globalization. A lot less attention has been given to another process of economic integration - the process of European integration. One exception is the study of the American sociologist Jason Beckfield from the year 2006 in which the author shows a negative effect of both political as well as economic Europeanization on income inequality. These results shall be replicated in this study based on income data from EU member countries for the time period 1993-2007. Thereby the assumptions regarding both processes - Globalization and Europeanization - shall be linked theoretically as well as empirically. The results will indicate that in particular the process of economic integration into the EU's Common Market has a considerable effect on the income inequality. The negative effects of political integration and globalization are not or only partially supported." (author's abstract

Long-term effects of economic fluctuations on health and cognition in Europe and the United States

Several studies suggest that population health improves during recessions and deteriorates during economic expansions. However, the majority of these studies only focus on the short-term or contemporaneous effects of economic fluctuations on health. As a result, very little evidence exists on potential long-term health effects of exposure to booms or recessions. This can be regarded as a major gap in knowledge, given the fact that most diseases are the results of exposure or behaviours during a longer period of time. Furthermore, a large body of research also suggests that many risks associated with recessions may accumulate over the course of life and lead to a gradual deterioration in health. By focusing only on the short-term effects, most studies thus ignore potential longrun health effects of economic fluctuations. This thesis aims to bridge the gap between studies on the population level assessing the short-term effects of economic fluctuations on health, and studies on the individual level, which have analysed the health-effects of risks associated with a declining economy including unemployment, job loss and job insecurity. In order to assess potential longterm effects of business cycles on health, I linked historical information on macroeconomic fluctuations during the 20th century to individual-level data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) as well as the U.S. Health and Retirement Study (HRS). This approach makes it possible to identify the state of the economy during different life-course periods for every respondent and relate it to health outcomes measured in later life. Regarding the macroeconomic conditions at any given age as largely exogenous, the four empirical papers included in this thesis thereby assess the relationship between business cycles and health during three different life-course periods: the time around graduation from full-time education, middle and late adulthood as well as the years nearing retirement. Overall, the results suggest that individuals who experienced less favourable economic conditions during these life-course periods have a higher risk of having additional limitations in physical functioning, lower levels of cognitive functioning, as well as higher risks of cardiovascular disease in later life. In contrast to studies showing that population health improves during recessions, these findings suggest that potential short-term improvements in health may be outweighed by deteriorations in health in the long run. They also raise important questions about the role of potential mechanisms linking differential exposure to the business cycle to health in later life

Desigualdades socioeconómicas en la presión arterial alta y factores de riesgo adicionales de enfermedad cardiovascular entre las personas mayores en Colombia: resultados de un estudio representativo a nivel nacional

Background Studies in high-income countries have documented a consistent gradient between socio-economic status (SES) and high blood pressure (HBP), a key risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, evidence from Latin American countries (LA) remains comparatively scarce and inconclusive. Data Data for 3,984 individuals came from a nationally representative survey of individuals aged 60 years or above in Colombia (Encuesta de Salud, Bienestar y Envejecimiento) (SABE) conducted in 2015. SES was measured by educational achievement and household assets. CVD risk factors included objectively measured HBP and body mass index (BMI), as well as behaviors (smoking, alcohol consumption, fruit and vegetables intake, and physical activity). Methods Bivariate methods and multivariate regression models were used to assess associations between SES with HBP as well as additional risk factors for CVD. Results Individuals with lower SES have significantly higher risk of suffering from HBP. Compared to those with no formal education, individuals with secondary or post-secondary education have a 37% lower risk of HBP (odds ratio [OR] = 0.63, P-value<0.001). Being in the highest asset quartile (most affluent) is associated with a 44% lower risk (OR = 56, P-value = 0.001) of HBP compared to those in the lowest asset quartile (most deprived). Individuals with lower SES are more likely to smoke, not engage in regular physical activity and not regularly consume fruits or vegetables. In contrast, individuals with higher SES are more likely to consume alcohol and, those with more assets, more likely to be obese. Conclusions Among older Colombians there exists a marked SES gradient in HBP as well as several additional risk factors for CVD. The results highlight the importance of a public health approach towards HBP and additional CVD risk factors that takes into account the specific conditions of older individuals, especially among disadvantaged groups