Estimating anticipatory, immediate, and delayed effects of disability registration on depressive symptoms.

PURPOSE: This study examines (a) whether disability registration has anticipatory, immediate, and delayed effects on depressive symptoms and (b) how these effects differ by gender. RESEARCH METHOD/DESIGN: Using data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study spanning over 16 waves between 2005 and 2020, this study employed the individual-level fixed effects models to estimate the trajectories of depressive symptoms before and after the registration of physical disability, for a cohort of 20,054 individuals. Furthermore, gender-stratified fixed effects models were used to examine gender differences. RESULTS: Compared to the preregistration reference period (i.e., 4 or more years before disability registration), there was a sustained rise in depressive symptoms leading up to the year of registration, indicating the presence of anticipatory effects. After disability registration, depressive symptoms consistently remained at a statistically higher level than during the initial reference period, with a gradual return to the baseline level of depressive symptoms over time. These anticipatory, immediate, and delayed effects of disability registration were notably more pronounced among men than women. CONCLUSION/IMPLICATIONS: To develop more effective mental health interventions for people with disability, policymakers should consider gendered trajectories of depressive symptoms before and after disability registration. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Disability acceptance and depressive symptoms: the moderating role of social support.

Purpose: This study aims to estimate (a) the relationship between disability acceptance and depressive symptoms, and (b) how the quality and quantity of social support might moderate the link between disability acceptance and depressive symptoms.Materials and methods: The data for this study included information from 5165 individuals with disability who participated in 3 waves of the Disability and Life Dynamic Panel spanning years 2018 to 2020. This study employed fixed effects models to estimate the association between disability acceptance and depressive symptoms. Interaction models were used to assess the moderating effects of both the quantity and quality of social support.Results: A lower acceptance of disability was positively associated with depressive symptoms. Moreover, both the quantity and quality of social support were associated with a decrease in depressive symptoms. Only the quality of social support played a significant role in moderating the relationship between disability acceptance and depressive symptoms.Conclusion: A lower acceptance of disability increases depressive symptoms in individuals with disabilities. This study underscores the need for interventions to focus on enhancing the quality of social support to mitigate the link between disability acceptance and depressive symptoms.

A lower acceptance of disability is positively associated with depressive symptoms among persons with disability.The association between lower disability acceptance and depressive symptoms attenuates as emotional support from family and friends increases.The number of family and friends does not significantly change the relationship between lower disability acceptance and depressive symptoms.The findings highlight the importance of interventions enhancing quality of social support in order to mitigate the association between disability acceptance and psychological health.

Socioeconomic inequalities in deaths of despair: Age heterogeneity in Canada's working age population.

PURPOSE: Although prior literature documented socioeconomic inequalities in deaths of despair among working age population, it is unclear whether and how (a) the link between socioeconomic status and deaths of despair differs by age (b) each measure of socioeconomic status has independent effects on deaths of despair. This study aims to reduce these knowledge gaps. METHODS: Using data from a large scale nationally representative linked dataset (2011 Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohorts), this study employed Fine-Gray subdistribution hazard models to estimate the link between socioeconomic status and deaths of despair due to suicide, drug overdose, and alcoholic liver disease among working age population (N = 4,076,530). Age stratified analysis was conducted to examine age heterogeneity. RESULTS: Socioeconomic status, such as housing tenure, employment status, household income, and education level, was associated with deaths of despair among working age population. Age differences in the association between socioeconomic status and deaths of despair were found. While education level was pronounced for deaths of despair for younger adults, a combination of socioeconomic status was significantly associated with deaths of despair for those in late adulthood. CONCLUSIONS: Socioeconomic inequalities in deaths of despair are manifest among Canadian working age population. This study lends support the social and health policies aimed at reducing gaps in mortalities.

Housing cost burden and external causes of mortality: Variations across housing regimes in high-income countries, 2010-2020.

OBJECTIVES: While comparative studies reported that generous welfare state improves population health, they did not take into account the roles of housing as a cornerstone of welfare state. To reduce knowledge gaps, this study aims to estimate (a) the link between housing affordability stress and mortality rate due to external causes and (b) the moderating effects of housing regime on such association. METHODS: Using country level panel data from the databases of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), fixed effects were performed to estimate the effects of housing costs to income ratio on mortality rates due to external causes (accidents, intentional self-harm, and assault). Also, we tested whether housing regimes moderate the association between housing cost burden and mortality rate. RESULTS: An increased level of housing cost burden predicted mortality rates due to accidents and intentional self-harm. Such association was pronounced for countries with higher rates of homeownership and limited access to market self-help. In addition, when homeownership rates and debt-to-income ratios are taken into account as time-varying variables, the elevated mortality risks associated with both increased housing cost burden and higher homeownership are mitigated in countries where debt relative to income increases. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that different housing systems shape divergent patterns of mortality risks associated with housing affordability stress. Future studies may wish to incorporate housing in macro comparative studies on population health.

The link between disability and social participation revisited: Heterogeneity by type of social participation and by socioeconomic status.

BACKGROUND: While prior literature explores the impact of disability on social participation, the distinct characteristics of diverse social activities could further complicate this relationship. Furthermore, this relationship may exhibit heterogeneity when considering socioeconomic status (SES). OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate whether the relationship between disability and social participation differs depending on the type of social participation, and to what extent this relationship is moderated by SES. METHODS: Data from seven waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing were analyzed. Various types of social participation, including socializing, leisure, volunteer, political, and religious activities, were considered. Individual fixed effects models were employed to account for unobserved individual-level heterogeneity. To investigate the potential moderating role of SES, an interaction term between disability and SES was included. RESULTS: Disability was associated with a decrease in social participation (b = -0.088). When differentiating types of social participation, the associations were negative for socializing and leisure activities (b = -0.092 and b = -0.012, respectively) and positive for volunteer activities (b = 0.012). The negative association between disability and social participation was generally stronger among higher-SES groups than lower-SES groups. Specifically, the negative association with leisure activities was more pronounced among the high-education groups. In contrast, the positive association with volunteer activities was more evident among the low-education group. CONCLUSIONS: Disability has a negative association with engagement in socializing and leisure activities and a positive association with engagement in volunteer activities. Policymakers should consider the role of SES in complicating the relationship between disability and social participation.

Transitioning into and out of precarious employment and life satisfaction: Evidence from asymmetric fixed effects models.

Previous studies have found that those with precarious jobs report lower levels of life satisfaction than those with non-precarious jobs. However, it is unclear whether transitioning into and out of precarious jobs has differential effects on life satisfaction. This study examines the association between employment status transitions and life satisfaction, as well as gender differences in these associations. Data from the Korean Welfare Panel Study (N = 9,792) from 2006 to 2020 were used in this study. A novel asymmetric fixed effects model was employed to separately estimate the association for transitioning into and out of precarious employment. Gender heterogeneity was estimated by including an interaction term of gender and employment transition. Standard fixed effects estimates showed that precarious employment is negatively associated with life satisfaction (b = -0.048). Asymmetric fixed effects models revealed that transitioning out of precarious employment is associated with increased life satisfaction (b = 0.051), while transitioning into a precarious job is not significantly associated with life satisfaction. These asymmetric associations were more pronounced for men than women. This study provides evidence that, especially for men, the association for transitioning out of precarious employment is significantly larger than the association for transitioning into precarious employment. Policies that facilitate the transition into stable employment are likely to enhance the quality of life for employed individuals.

Transitions into and out of housing cost burden and their asymmetric effects on depressive symptoms: the moderating role of housing tenure.

OBJECTIVES: This study uses an approach that estimates the asymmetric effects of transitioning into and out of housing cost burden on psychological health. STUDY DESIGN: We used data from 14 waves of the Korean Welfare Panel Study. METHODS: We estimated an asymmetric fixed-effects model to examine whether transitioning into and out of housing cost burden is associated with depressive symptoms. Interaction models were used to assess whether these effects differ by housing tenure. RESULTS: A standard fixed-effects model indicates that housing cost burden is associated with depressive symptoms (b = 0.126). However, the results of the asymmetric fixed-effects model suggest that transitioning out of housing cost burden reduces depressive symptoms (b = -0.171), while transitioning into housing cost burden is not associated with a change in depressive symptoms. These asymmetric effects of housing cost burden on depressive symptoms are more pronounced for renters than for owner-occupiers. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that alleviating housing cost burden can improve the psychological well-being of individuals, particularly among renters.

A longitudinal study of immigrant mothers' destination-language proficiency and their children's psychological well-being: Evidence and mechanisms from a study in South Korea.

RATIONALE: Despite the well-established link between an immigrant's destination-language proficiency and psychological well-being, little is known about the relationship between an immigrant's destination-language proficiency and well-being of their children. OBJECTIVE: This study investigated whether and how immigrant mothers' Korean proficiency is associated with life satisfaction and depressive symptoms among their children in South Korea. A comprehensive set of potential underlying mechanisms was also examined. METHODS: Using four waves of data from the Multicultural Adolescents Panel Study (MAPS), this study estimated fixed effects regression models to reduce the possibility of bias due to individual-level heterogeneity. To test for mediation formally, Sobel mediation tests were conducted. RESULTS: Fixed effects estimates suggested that immigrant mothers' Korean proficiency is positively associated with their children's psychological well-being. Specifically, a one-standard-deviation increase in Korean proficiency was associated with an increase in life satisfaction by 13% of a standard deviation and a decrease in depressive symptoms by 9% of a standard deviation. Mediation tests revealed that this association is explained by a combination of social-psychological factors. Friend support was the most salient mediator, followed by lower acculturation stress, positive perceptions of local community, and teacher support. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study suggest that efforts to improve immigrant mothers' destination-language proficiency would also benefit their children's psychological well-being. Furthermore, promoting children's relationships with peers at school may mitigate the negative psychological consequences of immigrant mothers' limited language proficiency.

The gendered health consequences of persistent exposure to short sleep duration during adolescence.

INTRODUCTION: Despite evidence that sleep duration is associated with adolescent health, there remain several gaps in the literature. Little is known about: (1) the extent to which persistent exposure to short sleep duration is associated with adolescent health and (2) whether this association varies by gender. METHODS: Using six waves of longitudinal data from the 2011-2016 Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey (N = 6147), this study examined whether persistent exposure to short sleep duration is related to two adolescent health outcomes (overweight status and self-rated health). Fixed effects models were estimated to account for individual-level heterogeneity. RESULTS: Short sleep duration was associated with being overweight and self-rated health in different ways for boys and girls. Gender-stratified analysis suggests that, for girls, the risk of being overweight increased for 5 years in a row as short sleep duration persisted. Prolonged short sleep duration also resulted in a continued decline in girls' self-rated health. For boys, persistent exposure to short sleep duration predicted a lower likelihood of being overweight up to the fourth year, but then began to recover. No association between persistent exposure to short sleep duration and self-rated health was observed for boys. CONCLUSION: Persistent exposure to short sleep duration was found to be more harmful to the health of girls than boys. Promoting longer sleep duration during adolescence may be an effective intervention to improve adolescent health, especially for girls.

Prolonged social isolation and cognitive function in older adults: lack of informal social contact versus formal social activity as the source of social isolation.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigates the cognitive function trajectories associated with prolonged social isolation, while distinguishing between a lack of informal social contact and a lack of formal social activity as the source of social isolation. METHODS: Data from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing spanning 12 years between 2006 and 2018 were analyzed. A lack of frequent informal social contact or formal social activity was used to assess social isolation, and cognitive function was measured by Korean Mini-Mental State Examination. Fixed effects regression models were used to account for unobserved individual-level confounders. RESULTS: A prolonged absence of frequent informal social contact was linked to a decline in cognitive function up to the three waves of exposure (b = -2.135), but cognitive function has not declined further since then. A persistent lack of formal social activity was associated with a decline in cognitive function up to the fifth and subsequent waves of exposure (b = -3.073). No gender differences were observed in these relationships. CONCLUSION: Prolonged social isolation, particularly a lack of formal social activity, can pose a significant threat to the cognitive health of older adults.

Understanding Heterogeneity in the Relationship Between Cancer and Hand Grip Strength: A Longitudinal Analysis.

This study examined whether the relationship between cancer and hand grip strength differs by sex and along the hand grip strength distribution. Using six waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA) (N = 9735), sex-stratified unconditional quantile regression models with fixed effects were used to assess sex-specific effects of cancer for patients in different quantiles of the hand grip strength distribution. Cancer diagnosis was negatively associated with hand grip strength for males, but not females, and this sex difference was statistically significant. Quantile regression models showed that the stronger association between cancer and hand grip strength is observed among males with weaker hand grip strength. No statistically significant association was found between hand grip strength and cancer in females across the entire distribution of hand grip strength. This study provided evidence of the heterogeneity in the relationship between cancer and hand grip strength.

Short sleep duration and adolescent health: does weekend catch-up sleep work and for whom?

OBJECTIVES: Despite evidence that sleep duration affects adolescent health, there remain important research gaps in the literature. Little is known about (1) whether the association between weekday sleep duration and health is confounded by unobserved individual heterogeneity and (2) the extent to which weekend catch-up sleep (WCS) duration moderates this association. This study addresses these gaps. STUDY DESIGN: Using six waves of longitudinal data from the 2011-2016 Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey (N = 6633), this study examined the relationship between weekday sleep duration, WCS duration, and two measures of adolescent health, body mass index (BMI) and self-rated health (SRH). METHODS: We estimated fixed effects models to account for individual-level heterogeneity. RESULTS: Fixed effects estimates suggest that part of the associations between short sleep duration and adolescent health are confounded by unobserved individual heterogeneity (62% for BMI and 30% for poor SRH), although the associations remain statistically significant. Sleeping less than 6 h increased BMI by 0.203 and the probability of reporting poor SRH by about 2 percentage points. Controlling for individual heterogeneity, however, changed the sign of the WCS duration coefficient, suggesting that a longer WCS duration is positively associated with BMI (b = 0.021). No such patterns were found for SRH. CONCLUSIONS: Short weekday sleep duration threatens adolescent health. WCS duration is protective only for those who are most sleep deprived.

Chronic Loneliness, Gender, and Trajectories of Change in Hand Grip Strength in Older Adults.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined whether exposure to chronic loneliness is associated with a persistent decline in hand grip strength among community-dwelling older adults in Korea, and this association varies by gender. METHODS: This study analyzed data from 2,570 adults aged 65 or older collected over the course of 7 waves (12 years) of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing from 2006 to 2018 (1,403 women and 1,167 men). Exposure to chronic loneliness was assessed by the experience of loneliness over a period of years, and hand grip strength was measured by an objective diagnostic tool. Gender-stratified fixed effects models were estimated to determine whether the association between chronic loneliness and hand grip strength differs by gender while accounting for time-invariant individual heterogeneity. RESULTS: Chronic loneliness was associated with a persistent decline in hand grip strength in older adults over an extended period of time. Gender-specific analyses revealed that only men continued to experience a decline in hand grip strength up to the fifth and subsequent waves of exposure (b = -1.889). By contrast, for older women, a significant decrease in hand grip strength was observed only in the second wave of exposure (b = -0.690). These gendered trajectories were statistically significant. DISCUSSION: Chronic loneliness impairs the physical health of older adults in the long run. These physical health consequences of chronic loneliness were more pronounced among older men than older women. The study's findings inform the development of interventions that mitigate the adverse health consequences of chronic loneliness.

Multidimensional housing insecurity and psychological health: how do gender and initial psychological health differentiate the association?

OBJECTIVES: Despite compelling evidence for housing-health associations, it is still unclear (1) whether gender differentiates psychological responses to housing insecurity and (2) the extent to which initial psychological health influences the association between housing insecurity and psychological health. The present study aims to reduce these knowledge gaps. STUDY DESIGN: We used data from over 13 waves (155,114 observations) of the Korea Welfare Panel Study. METHODS: This study tests fixed effects models that can take into account measured and unmeasured heterogeneity. Quantile regression with fixed effects was conducted to assess whether the observed association depends on the initial state of psychological health. All analyses are gender stratified. RESULTS: Fixed effects estimates show that housing problems, such as being a renter (b = 0.159), housing cost burden (b = 0.173), and rental/or mortgage arrears (b = 1.194), are significantly associated with depressive symptoms. Similar patterns were observed for poor housing quality (b = 0.598) and a lack of essential facilities (b = 0.286). Although the association between the severity of housing insecurity and depressive symptoms was concentrated among men with initially higher levels of depressive symptoms, the observed association was consistently pronounced for women regardless of initial psychological health. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that gender perspectives need to be incorporated into the development of housing intervention for vulnerable groups.

The association between housing cost burden and avoidable mortality in wealthy countries: cross-national analysis of social and housing policies, 2000-2017.

BACKGROUND: It has been shown that the high cost of housing can be detrimental to individual health. However, it is unknown (1) whether high housing costs pose a threat to population health and (2) whether and how social policies moderate the link between housing cost burden and mortality. This study aims to reduce these knowledge gaps. METHODS: Country-level panel data from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries are used. Housing cost to income ratio and age-standardised mortality were obtained from the OECD database. Fixed effects models were conducted to estimate the extent to which the housing cost to income ratio was associated with preventable mortality, treatable mortality, and suicides. In order to assess the moderating effects of social and housing policies, different types of social spending per capita as well as housing policies were taken into account. RESULTS: Housing cost to income ratio was significantly associated with preventable mortality, treatable mortality, and suicide during the post-global financial crisis (2009-2017) but not during the pre-global financial crisis (2000-2008). Social spending on pensions and unemployment benefits decreased the levels of mortality rate associated with housing cost burden. In countries with higher levels of social housing stock, the link between housing cost burden and mortality was attenuated. Similar patterns were examined for countries with rent control. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that housing cost burden can be related to population health. Future studies should examine the role of protective measures that alleviate health problems caused by housing cost burden.

Cumulative exposure to poor housing conditions and psychological well-being: Does the relationship differ for young and middle-aged adults and older adults?

OBJECTIVES: This study examined whether cumulative exposure to poor housing conditions is negatively associated with psychological well-being, and whether this association varies by age. METHODS: Using fifteen waves of the Korean Welfare Panel Study between 2005 and 2019 (118,500 person-observations), this study employed fixed-effects regression models to account for unobserved individual-level heterogeneity. Exposure to poor housing conditions ranged from 1 to more than 5 annual waves. To formally test for age heterogeneity, interactive models were estimated. RESULTS: The trajectories of change in psychological well-being associated with cumulative exposure to poor housing conditions were different between young and middle-aged adults and older adults. Among young and middle-aged adults, the levels of depressive symptoms increased in the first year of exposure but remained at a similar level since then. In contrast, with the persistence of poor housing conditions, older adults continued to develop greater depressive symptoms over time. Similar age differences were found for life satisfaction. As exposure to poor housing conditions accumulated, life satisfaction persistently declined among older adults, but not young and middle-aged adults. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that cumulative exposure to poor housing conditions has more adverse psychological consequences for older adults than young and middle-aged adults.

How do housing asset and income relate to mortality? A population-based cohort study of 881220 older adults in Canada.

OBJECTIVE: A growing body of research has documented a well-established link between socioeconomic conditions and mortality among older adults. This study aims to understand (a) whether housing assets and income are associated with mortality and (b) if the value of housing assets affects the relationship between income and mortality; both questions are studied among older adults aged 65 or over in Canada. METHODS: Using the population-based linked dataset (2011 Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohorts) of 881,220 older adults over six years of follow-up (2011-2017), this study uses survival analysis to estimate the link between housing assets, income level and mortality. We also assess the potential moderating effect of housing asset levels on the association between income and mortality by categorizing individuals along two dimensions: whether they are income-poor and whether they are housing assets-poor. RESULTS: The mortality rate was higher among both the lowest asset (HR = 1.346) and the lowest income group (HR = 1.203). The association is pronounced for older adults aged 65 to 74. Assets did not significantly moderate the link between income and mortality. Income-related inequalities in mortality are observed among each group of housing asset level. Compared to those who are neither income-poor nor housing assets-poor, individuals who were income poor but not housing assets-poor were more likely to die (HR = 1.067) over seven years of follow-up, and people who were housing assets-poor only were more likely to die (HR = 1.210). Being housing-assets poor and income-poor yielded a higher hazard ratio (HR = 1.291). CONCLUSIONS: Housing assets and income are associated with mortality of older adults. It is important to identify people who are assets poor and/or income poor who are at higher risks of mortality. Social policies aimed at reducing income insecurity and housing insecurity can reduce mortality inequalities.

Adolescent sleep quality and quantity and educational attainment: a test of multiple mechanisms using sibling difference models.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to determine whether and how sleep quality and quantity during adolescence are related to educational attainment in adulthood. This study also investigates whether this relationship varies by gender. METHODS: Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, the present study employed a sibling fixed effect approach that takes into account unobserved family background factors such as genetics and social environments. Gender-stratified analyses were conducted to consider the potential gendered relationship between adolescent sleep and educational attainment. RESULTS: Controlling for unobserved family-level heterogeneity attenuated the associations between adolescent sleep characteristics and educational attainment, albeit in different ways for boys and girls. Gender-stratified models suggest that, for boys, only the association between short sleep duration and educational attainment was robust to adjustment for sibling fixed effects. In contrast, for girls, among three sleep quality measures, only trouble falling or staying asleep remained significantly associated with educational attainment even after controlling for unobserved family heterogeneity. Sibling fixed effects estimates suggest that short sleep duration (6 or fewer hours per night) was negatively associated with years of schooling only among boys (b = -0.443), whereas trouble falling or staying asleep was associated with a reduction in years of schooling only among girls (b = -0.556). The mechanisms underlying the observed associations also differed by gender. For boys, the association between short sleep duration and educational attainment was partially explained by a combination of educational, social, and psychological factors. Only intermediate educational factors explained part of the association between trouble falling or staying asleep and educational attachment among girls. CONCLUSIONS: The study's finding that the relationship between adolescent sleep characteristics and educational attainment and the mechanisms underlying this relationship differ by gender calls attention to the need for gender-specific interventions.

The gendered relationship between cumulative exposure to lower community attachment and adolescent health.

This study examines whether the longitudinal association between cumulative exposure to lower community attachment and adolescent health differs by gender. Using seven waves of the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey spanning 2010-2016, this study examines the association between cumulative exposure to lower community attachment and self-rated health among Korean adolescents. This study estimated fixed-effects models to account for unobserved confounders at the individual level. Fixed-effects estimates revealed that cumulative exposure to lower community attachment is associated with a decreased likelihood of reporting excellent health. Starting from the initial exposure, girls' self-rated health continued to deteriorate over time. In contrast, boys' self-rated health decreased for up to 3 years of persistent exposure, but has since returned to pre-exposure levels. The association between cumulative exposure to lower levels of community attachment and a decline in self-rated health is more pronounced among girls than boys. Gender-specific community-based interventions during adolescence may be required to promote adolescent health and well-being.