Cohort factors impinging on suicide rates in the United States, 1990-2010

in PAA server (2016)

We use CDC microdata on cause of death and CPS data on populations by age to create suicide rates for five-year age groups at five-year intervals, further cross-classified by race/ethnicity, education ... [more ▼]

We use CDC microdata on cause of death and CPS data on populations by age to create suicide rates for five-year age groups at five-year intervals, further cross-classified by race/ethnicity, education, and marital status. We examine the suicide history 1990-2010 of U.S. birth cohorts, net of age and cohort linear trends. These de-trended cohort deviations follow familiar patterns: most pronounced in the Baby Boom, least pronounced during the Baby Bust, they illustrate the so-called Easterlin effect. Suicide rates for women show similar patterns as suicide patterns for men. We show persistence of those effects net of micro factors (especially education and marriage) implicated in suicide behavior and correlated at the macro level with relative cohort size. Analysis of suicide patterns over time for high- and low-educated men and women shows that white men with low education face a sharp increase, significantly above the linear time trends, in suicide rates among cohorts born between 1955 and 1970. This bump is mostly unrelated to secular trends of increasing average educational attainment rates, at least if no interaction between age and cohort is involved in the explanation. No obvious pattern related to cohort size is found for African-American high- and low-educated men, which makes sense given the very different historical dynamics for this minority sub-population. [less ▲]

Dynamics of income rank volatility: Evidence from Germany and the US

in SOEP2016 Book of Abstracts (2016)

This paper provides a methodology to compare profiles of income rank volatility over time and across distributions. While most of the existing measures are affected by changes in the marginal ... [more ▼]

This paper provides a methodology to compare profiles of income rank volatility over time and across distributions. While most of the existing measures are affected by changes in the marginal distributions, this paper proposes a framework that based on individuals’ relative position in the distribution results to be neutral to the structural changes that occur in the economy. Applying this approach to investigate rank volatility in Germany and the US over three decades, we show that while poorer individuals are the most volatile in both countries, the volatility trend of the middle class marks the difference between these two countries. [less ▲]

Dynamics of income volatility: Evidence from Germany and the US

Scientific Conference (2015, July 15)

More inequality, less mobility? Economic inequality, intergenerational elasticity and social viscosity in Europe

Scientific Conference (2015)

Variations of the stratification of health in more and less equal societies: The role of social origins

Scientific Conference (2015)

Full paper in press at International Journal for Equity in Health: Chauvel, L., & Leist, A. K. Socioeconomic hierarchy and health gradient in Europe: The role of income inequality and of social origins

Socioeconomic hierarchy and health gradient in Europe: The role of income inequality and of social origins

in International Journal for Equity in Health (2015), 14(132), 1-12

Introduction. Health inequalities reflect multidimensional inequality (income, education, and other indicators of socioeconomic position) and vary across countries and welfare regimes. To which extent ... [more ▼]

Introduction. Health inequalities reflect multidimensional inequality (income, education, and other indicators of socioeconomic position) and vary across countries and welfare regimes. To which extent there is intergenerational transmission of health via parental socioeconomic status has rarely been investigated in comparative perspective. The study sought to explore if different measures of stratification produce the same health gradient and to which extent health gradients of income and of social origins vary with level of living and income inequality. Method. A total of 299,770 observations were available from 18 countries assessed in EU-SILC 2005 and 2011 data, which contain information on social origins. Income inequality (Gini) and level of living were calculated from EU-SILC. Logit rank transformation provided normalized inequalities and distributions of income and social origins up to the extremes of the distribution and was used to investigate net comparable health gradients in detail. Multilevel random-slope models were run to post-estimate best linear unbiased predictors (BLUPs) and related standard deviations of residual intercepts (median health) and slopes (income-health gradients) per country and survey year. Results. Health gradients varied across different measures of stratification, with origins and income producing significant slopes after controls. Income inequality was associated with worse average health, but income inequality and steepness of the health gradient were only marginally associated. Discussion. Linear health gradients suggest gains in health per rank of income and of origins even at the very extremes of the distribution. Intergenerational transmission of status gains in importance in countries with higher income inequality. Countries differ in the association of income inequality and income-related health gradient, and low income inequality may mask health problems of vulnerable individuals with low status. Not only income inequality, but other country characteristics such as familial orientation play a considerable role in explaining steepness of the health gradient. [less ▲]

Increases in well-being after transition to retirement for unemployed. Catching up with formerly employed persons.

E-print/Working paper (2015)

This paper examines the extent to which well-being levels change in the transition to retirement depending on transitioning from being employed, unemployed, or economically inactive. Whereas transitioning ... [more ▼]

This paper examines the extent to which well-being levels change in the transition to retirement depending on transitioning from being employed, unemployed, or economically inactive. Whereas transitioning from employment to unemployment has been found to cause an increase in depressive symptoms or decline in life satisfaction with more time spent in unemployment, it is not clear to which extent transitioning from unemployment to retirement affects well-being levels compared to retiring after being employed or economically inactive. We use two waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe monitoring respondents transitioning to retirement and use life satisfaction as well-being measure. The effect of the transition is captured with a difference-in-difference like approach to test if the change in well-being after retirement is different for persons who were formerly unemployed or inactive, respectively, compared to formerly employed retirees. Results indicate that retiring from unemployment is associated with an increase in life satisfaction, but presents mainly a catching-up effect compared to employed persons transitioning to retirement. Retirement from labour market inactivity, especially sick leave, does not lead to significant changes in well-being. Findings are robust to selection into unemployment and country differences. As well-being of unemployed persons recovers after transitioning to retirement, especially the currently unemployed population should be supported to prevent detrimental consequences of economically unfavourable conditions and lower well-being. [less ▲]

Generational Inequalities and Welfare Regimes

in Social Forces (2014), 92(4), 1259-1283

This paper uses a new age period cohort model to show that among cohorts born between 1935 and 1975, cohorts born around 1950 are significantly above the income trend in most countries. However, such ... [more ▼]

This paper uses a new age period cohort model to show that among cohorts born between 1935 and 1975, cohorts born around 1950 are significantly above the income trend in most countries. However, such inequalities between generations are much stronger in conservative, continental European welfare states, compared to social democratic and liberal welfare states. As we show, this is because conservative welfare states expose some cohorts to high youth unemployment and make lifetime earnings dependent on a favorable entry into the labor market. We thus demonstrate that conservative welfare states have put the burden of adjustment to the post-1975 economic slowdown on birth cohorts that could not get stable jobs before 1975, while similar cohort inequalities are much weaker in liberal and social democratic welfare states. In these latter two welfare regimes, the burden of adjustment to the post-1975 economic slowdown was not put on the shoulders of some cohorts relative to others. Our analysis is the first to show which welfare regimes are more conducive to such inequalities between cohorts and what mechanisms lead to these material cohort inequalities. [less ▲]

Static and Dynamic Inequalities in Europe: Intergenerational Mobility and Income Inequalities

Scientific Conference (2014)

Die Grenzen des Ausbildungsexports. Arbeitsmarktchancen Jugendlicher in Südeuropa sind besonders konjunkturabhängig

in Berufsbildung in Wissenschaft und Praxis (2014), 43(6), 4-5

Nach den aktuellsten von Eurostat harmonisierten Arbeitslosendaten für unter 25-Jährige stehen Länder mit dualen Ausbildungssystemen gut da. Die deutsche Jugendarbeitslosigkeit ist von 2007 bis 2013 von ... [more ▼]

Nach den aktuellsten von Eurostat harmonisierten Arbeitslosendaten für unter 25-Jährige stehen Länder mit dualen Ausbildungssystemen gut da. Die deutsche Jugendarbeitslosigkeit ist von 2007 bis 2013 von 11,9 auf 7,9 Prozent gesunken. In den südeuropäischen Ländern ist sie jedoch um ein Vielfaches gestiegen. Deswegen zu schlussfolgern, dass eine bessere Ausbildung auch die Arbeitsmarktchancen junger Südeuropäer verbessert, ist jedoch zu einfach. [less ▲]