Evaluating the impact of the UK job retention scheme on mental health and well‐being using matched difference‐in‐differences

ObjectivesTo compare the mental health and life satisfaction of those employed in the gig work and contingent work with those in full-time or part-time work and the unemployed in the...

BackgroundIncreasing life expectancy is leading to an increasing number of older people in need of some form of care and the UK relies on adult children to provide much of...

The health of unpaid caregivers is poorer, on average, than in non-caregivers. There has been little focus on how health changes when becoming a caregiver and whether this varies by age, gender, and caregiving intensity. We aimed to investigate the mental and physical health changes involved with becoming a caregiver and whether these associations varied by gender, caregiving intensity, or age. This study used data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study (2009-20) to examine mental and physical health changes around the transition to becoming a caregiver in adults aged 16 years and older. We included adults with information on care, complete covariates needed for matching, and at least one measure of health before or after becoming a caregiver (or matched non-caregiver). Health was measured via General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12, psychological distress) and 12-item Short Form Survey (SF-12, physical and mental functioning). We applied piecewise growth curve modelling with propensity score matching to model trajectories of mental and physical health for caregivers and matched non-caregivers. Analyses were stratified by age group, gender, and caregiving intensity. Sample sizes varied from 3025 (GHQ-12 analyses in early adulthood) to 5785 (SF-12 analyses in early mid-adulthood). Psychological distress increased during transition to caregiving for all ages, particularly in those younger than 64 years, those providing care for 20 h or more per week, and for someone living within the household. Mental health functioning worsened during caregiving transition for those aged 30-64 years, those providing 20 h or more per week, and for those caring for someone within the household. Physical health functioning did not change but there was evidence of lower levels of functioning before caregiving. Changes in mental and physical health upon transition to caregiving did not differ by gender. Our findings highlight the importance of early identification of and support for caregivers, including younger caregivers. This is important to break the cycle of caregiving and future care need. Health services staff, including general practitioners and hospital discharge teams, are well positioned for early identification of caregivers. We also encourage particular support for the mental health of caregivers and particularly those who become caregivers at a younger age. The UK Economic and Social Research Council.

BackgroundSocial care provision is increasingly important in the context of population ageing and the UK currently relies on family and friends to provide a majority of this care on an...

Pro-environmental behaviours (PEBs) and attitudes (PEAs) may influence different domains of health and wellbeing through several mechanisms. The household plays an important role in this relationship; however, there is no previous research on household level PEBs or the PEAs of other household members in relation to health and wellbeing. We used data from 22,427 people in 9344 multiple occupancy households in the UK Household Longitudinal Study. Explanatory variables were household level PEBs, individual PEAs and PEAs of other household members. We used five common physical and mental health and wellbeing outcome measures. Household PEBs were associated with higher life satisfaction. Individual PEAs were associated with lower life satisfaction and worse mental health. PEAs of other household members were associated with higher physical health, mental health and life satisfaction scores for all outcome measures. Findings suggest that ‘greener’ households can produce a ‘win-win’ result for the environment and public health.

Adolescence is a period when both mental health (MH) and wellbeing start deteriorating, which raises the question of how the two phenomena are linked and whether deterioration in one might be used to flag problematic developments in the other. While research shows that wellbeing and MH are associated, the direction of the association is not clear and longitudinal analyses, that might help disentangle the cause and effect, are scarce. Moreover, few studies have investigated the directional relation between MH and wellbeing early in the life course. In emerging adulthood, evidence indicates reciprocal associations and no gender differences, whereas, in early and middle adolescence, results are mixed and differ across gender. Thus, we investigated the relationship between MH and wellbeing and the moderating effect of gender in the crucial developmental transition from middle adolescence to emerging adulthood. We undertake a cross-lagged longitudinal data analysis from a pooled sample of six pseudo-cohorts, including information from 661 young people who participated in the UK Household Longitudinal Study at ages 17, 19, and 21. Using a 7-points overall life satisfaction (LS) scale as an index of wellbeing and the 12-item General Health Questionnaire as a measure of MH, we found no associations between LS and MH in the 17–19 transition and bidirectional associations in the 19–21 transition. There were no substantial gender differences in either transition. We conclude that LS and MH predict each other in the transition from late adolescence (age 19) to emerging adulthood (age 21) for both males and females.

Sandwich carers provide care to ageing parents or older relatives while simultaneously raising dependent children. There has been little focus on how mental and physical health trajectories change around becoming a sandwich carer - a gap this study aims to fill. Prospective longitudinal study. We used 10 waves of data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study (2009-2020) - a high-quality longitudinal data. Sandwich carers were parents who lived with children under age 16 and took up unpaid care of a family member in the older generation. Sandwich carers were matched with parents who did not take up any adult care (i.e., non-sandwiched parents) with similar characteristics. We then employed piecewise growth curve modelling to model the trajectories in mental and physical health before, during and after becoming a sandwich carer and comparing these with non-sandwiched parents. Among parents, the uptake of caring for a family member was associated with a deterioration in mental health, especially for those who spent more than 20h per week caring for a family member. The deterioration persisted for several years. Those who cared intensively also experienced greater physical health declines during the transition. We did not see evidence of gender difference in the above associations. It is essential for society to recognise the unique needs and challenges of sandwich carers and provide them with the necessary support systems, resources, and community networks to ensure their health is maintained. Targeted support is required for sandwich carers who care intensively.

Previous studies have largely omitted a dynamic analysis of how the transition into parenthood shapes gender differences in mental health trajectories. This study adopts a life course approach to examine how transitioning into parenthood affects men's and women's mental health across multiple domains over time, using large-scale panel data from the 'UK Household Longitudinal Study' (2009-2020). Results from fixed effects models with discrete-time trends show that: (1) women's mental health is more largely affected by parenthood than men's; (2) women's overall mental health shows stable improvements following childbirth, while men's shows mostly insignificant changes; (3) role and social functioning are largely improved among women following childbirth, but only marginally among men; (4) emotional functioning and vitality demonstrate the counteracting effects of parenthood for both genders, with increases in feeling happy but a deterioration in feeling calm and having energy, particularly during care-intensive years; (5) women show larger variations by socioeconomic characteristics than men, with women from higher socioeconomic backgrounds and working full-time experiencing smaller mental health benefits from parenthood compared to less privileged women or having lower paid work constraints. Overall, transitioning to parenthood leads to distinct changes in mental health domains with heterogeneous effects across genders and socioeconomic groups.

Applying a gender- and age group-sensitive approach, we investigated the effect of labour-market transitions (job loss and re-employment) on subjective physical and mental health. A combination of the difference-in-differences approach and propensity score matching controls for selectivity and initial health differences. This allowed us to analyse the causal effect of job loss and re-employment on subjective health. We made use of data from the German Panel Study Labour Market and Social Security and combined survey information with administrative records of the Federal Employment Agency for employed and unemployed men and women 31-60 years of age ( n = 2213). We controlled for labour-market experiences before the time period under study and for labour-market transitions between the interviews. Subjective health was assessed using the SF-12 health questionnaire, enabling us to differentiate between subjective mental and physical health functioning. We found that physical health was affected mainly in older persons between 45 and 60 years old. Controlling for covariates using propensity score matching, mental health was affected only when living-wage jobs (i.e. jobs that provide sufficient income to achieve a defined minimum standard of living above the social benefit level) are gained or lost. Younger women showed a significant improvement in mental health after re-employment. In contrast, job loss affected only older individuals' mental health, with a particularly negative effect observed for men. Our results not only showed that women and men are affected differently by job loss and re-employment, but also that age is an important factor. Older men were affected most severely by job loss, whereas re-employment was found to improve mental health only in women aged 31-44 years. It is therefore important to address the health problems of different socio-demographic groups separately, and to apply active labour-market policies with regard to unemployed men and women with health impairments. Based on our results, we suggest the promotion of employment with income levels above the maximum welfare benefit award.

Research on the role of art in alleviating mental health problems has increased dramatically. However, it remains unclear whether mental health benefits of the arts are the same across different social contexts of arts participation. The aim of the study is to investigate associations between two modes of arts participation, solitary and group-based, and psychological wellbeing (12-item general health questionnaire (GHQ-12). Data from waves 2 and 5 of the United Kingdom Household Longitudinal Study, involving 23,706 respondents, are used. Fixed-effects ordinary least squares is applied to examine the associations by following the same individuals over time. Our results show a positive association between mental health - using the GHQ-12 psychological wellbeing scale - and frequent participation in group-based arts activities (b=0.45, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.19 to 0.71, P<0.001). In contrast, solitary arts activities are not significantly associated with psychological wellbeing, even for those who participate frequently (b=0.20, 95% CI -0.04 to 0.44, P>0.05). The results remain similar when controlling for key social determinants of mental health such as unemployment and social support, and when running robustness checks using two other outcomes: life satisfaction and mental health functioning (12-item short form health survey mental health component). Arts participation and social context work in tandem and group-based participation is more effectively associated with lower levels of mental health problems. The results show more beneficial outcomes for group-based as opposed to solitary arts participation, proving this distinction is important for further research and providing a key insight for arts-based social prescribing.

BackgroundThere are concerns that social mitigation measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic may have led to declines in child mental health and widened mental health inequalities, because affluent families had...

Several studies have been devoted to establishing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health across gender, age, and ethnicity. However, much less attention has been paid to the differential effect of COVID-19 according to different personalities. We do this using the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS), a large-scale panel survey representative of the UK population. The UKHLS allows us to assess the mental health of the same respondent before and during the COVID-19 period based on their "Big Five" personality traits and cognitive skills. We find that during the COVID-19 period, individuals who have more extravert and open personality traits report a higher mental health deterioration, while those scoring higher in agreeableness are less affected. The effect of openness is particularly strong: One more SD predicts up to 0.23 more symptoms of mental health deterioration in the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) test during the COVID-19 period. In particular, for females, cognitive skills and openness are strong predictors of mental health deterioration, while for non-British White respondents, these predictors are extraversion and openness. Neuroticism strongly predicts worse mental health cross-sectionally, but it does not lead to significantly stronger deterioration during the pandemic. The study's results are robust to the inclusion of potential confounding variables such as changes in physical health, household income, and job status (like unemployed or furloughed).

Research shows initial COVID-19 lockdowns increased population mental distress. Yet, the mental health impact of repeated lockdowns in England remains unknown. To: (a) explore changes in population mental health symptoms over the COVID-19 pandemic period (March 2020 to March 2021) in England, comparing this with trends from a decade before (2009-2019) as well as after (2021-2023); (b) compare the mental health impact of each of the three lockdowns in England with periods of eased restrictions, determining who was most affected; (c) examine the impact of demographics and distinct time periods on the prevalence of mental health symptoms. A secondary analysis of a national longitudinal cohort study, utilising data from Waves 1-13 of the UK Household Longitudinal Study and from Waves 1-9 of the COVID-19 Survey. Mental health was assessed using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire. Student t-tests and logistical regressions were conducted. There was a significant increase in the prevalence of self-reported symptoms of mental health during England's pandemic period, encompassing three lockdowns, compared with the average of rates from 10 years before. Rates of reported mental health symptoms were not significantly different across each lockdown, but were significantly higher than pre-pandemic rates, declining with eased restrictions. Rates from the end of lockdown to May 2023 revealed elevated mental health symptoms compared with pre-pandemic. Elevated symptoms were observed for women, people homeworking, those with health conditions, individuals aged 30-45 years and those experiencing loneliness. Repeated lockdowns in England had a substantial impact on mental health, indicating requirements for ongoing mental health support.

Relationships Between Activities, Participation, Personal Factors, Mental Health, and Life Satisfaction in Persons With Spinal Cord Injury

There is growing evidence of a causal relationship between income and health. At the same time, pressure on reactive health and care services in the UK is increasing. Previous work to quantify the relationship has focused on particular age groups, conditions, or single-item self-rated health. This article reports findings from a study that aimed to provide more comprehensive estimates with an objective of creating an evidential basis for microsimulation modelling of upstream income interventions. We analyse the relationship between income and two health measures - SF-12 Mental Component Summary (MCS-12) and Physical Component Summary (PCS-12) - across 12 waves (2009/11-2020/22) of Understanding Society: The UK Household Longitudinal Study. Using a 'within-between' model (Model 1), we find that increases in income compared with an individual's average and a higher income compared with the sample average is associated with better mental health (higher MCS-12 score) and better functional physical health (higher PCS-12 score). However, for a given increase in household income (say £100 per month), the association with better mental and physical health is smaller at higher incomes. This suggests that redistribution from high-income to lower income households would increase average population physical and mental health, other things being equal. Using a random-effects logistic regression (Model 2), we similarly find that average income quintile is inversely and monotonically associated with the probability of having clinically significant symptoms of depressive disorders (MCS-12 ≤ 45.6) and physical health problems (PCS-12 score ≤ 50.0), with smaller changes in these probabilities from increases in income at higher points in the income distribution. These findings facilitate microsimulation modelling including an estimation of the impact of changes in QALYs, from changes in income, enabling a more detailed and complete understanding of which socioeconomic interventions might begin to address some of the causes of long-term health conditions that are underpinned by socioeconomic determinants.