Self-reported mental health problems in adolescence and occupational prestige in young adulthood: A 10-year follow-up study

Abstract

Many studies have reported a negative association between mental health problems and school performance and some studies have shown long-term negative consequences of such health problems, especially in relation to education. However, less is known about the link between different types of self-reported mental health problems in adolescence and occupational prestige in young adulthood.Using prospective survey data collected among 10–18-year-olds who were followed up after ten years (n = 605), the present study investigated, firstly, whether different types of self-reported mental health problems in adolescence – i.e., psychological and psychosomatic complaints, aggression and concentration difficulties – were associated with occupational prestige in young adulthood even after adjusting for childhood socioeconomic conditions; secondly, whether any such associations were partly or fully accounted for by differences in school performance; and thirdly, whether any associations between self-related mental health problems and occupational prestige varied by gender.Linear (OLS) regression analyses showed that self-reported concentration difficulties in adolescence were negatively associated with occupational prestige ten years later among both men and women. Aggression in adolescence was also negatively associated with later occupational prestige, but this association was accounted for by concentration difficulties. Psychological and psychosomatic complaints in adolescence were not however associated with occupational prestige in young adulthood. For both men and women, the association between concentration difficulties and occupational prestige was fully accounted for by differences in school grades.The findings indicate that self-reported concentration difficulties in adolescence have implications for individuals' occupational prestige in young adulthood among men and women alike. The association could be understood to be mediated by differences in school performance. Thus, to offer adolescents more equal chances of reaching high positions in the labor market, irrespective of their mental health status, it is important to provide adequate support during schooling.