Income Dynamics Research Articles

The Contribution of Work Values to Early Career Mobility

In the past quarter century, young people have started their careers in a labor market logic emphasizing individualized resources and with expectations and risks of uncertainty and unpredictability. We focus on one core individual resource, work values, and assess its contribution to early career trajectory dynamics among a cohort of Millennials between the ages of 18 to 35 and years 2005 through 2019. Using eight waves of the Transition to Adulthood Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, we consider how extrinsic and intrinsic work values predict both cumulative occupational and employer changes as well as observed annual earnings and occupational prestige trajectories. Extrinsic work values are highly predictive of employment change and destination. However, results vary significantly by educational attainment and sex, as extrinsic work values are associated with contrasting outcomes depending on whether respondents have a college degree, while the bulk of benefits of returns to work values are found for men. The current paper sheds light on the critical dynamics of early career mobility processes.

How do multiple deprivations in nuanced urban and rural settings affect health differently in South Africa? Evidence from NIDS data, 2017

Introduction/objectivePrevious research on socioeconomic factors influencing health outcomes has often centred on the urban–rural divide, overlooking the nuanced variations within these categories. This study enhances our understanding by moving beyond...

Effect of individual health perception, health consultation, and other risk factors on undiagnosed hypertension in South Africa

BackgroundSimilar to other nations, hypertension control is a challenge for public health in South Africa. To control hypertension, the condition must be screened and diagnosed in the public health system. This study examines how the prevalence of undiagnosed hypertension is influenced by various risk factors including demographic, socioeconomic, environmental, and behavioural factors, with primary focus on self-perceived health well-being and time since the last healthcare consultation.MethodsThe study utilized data from the National Income Dynamics Study (NiDS), a panel survey conducted approximately every two years between 2008 and 2017. Participants aged 15 years and older with at least two blood pressure measurements were included. The sample included 15,712 unique individuals (60.0% women) and 31,340 observations from the five survey waves (5,357 in 2008; 5,206 in 2010/11; 6,385 in 2012; 7,060 in 2014/15; and 7,332 in 2017). Both descriptive and analytical methods were used to study undiagnosed hypertension. Multilevel logistic regression was used to explore the relationship between undiagnosed hypertension with various risk factors including perceived health well-being and time since last health consultation.ResultsThe study showed that in 2008 (wave 1) and in 2017 (wave 5), approximately 53.5% and 42.6% respectively, of individuals aged 15 and above were unaware they could be hypertensive. Those who perceived their health as very good or excellent were respectively 2.15, 95% CI [1.89–2.44] and 3.29, 95% CI [2.85–3.80] times more likely to have undiagnosed hypertension, compared to those who perceived their health as fair or poor. Additionally, the risk of having undiagnosed hypertension increased gradually with time since last consultation on one’s health. Those whose last consultation was more than two years ago were 12.10, 95% CI [10.50–13.90] times more likely to have undiagnosed hypertension compared to those who had consulted within the last 30 days.ConclusionGiven that hypertension is often asymptomatic, self-perceived health can be misleading. This underscores the need for health programs to emphasize the importance of regular blood pressure checkups. Regular consultations with healthcare providers are crucial for early detection and management of hypertension.

Using internet-assisted geocoding of 1940 census addresses to reconstruct enumeration districts for use with redlining and longitudinal health datasets.

Many historical administrative documents, such as the 1940 census, have been digitized and thus could be merged with geographic data. Merged data could reveal social determinants of health, health and social policy milieu, life course events, and selection effects otherwise masked in longitudinal datasets. However, most exact boundaries of 1940 census enumeration districts have not yet been georeferenced. These exact boundaries could aid in analysis of redlining and other geographic and social contextual factors important for health outcomes today. Our objective is to locate and map a large set of 1940 enumeration districts. We use online resources and algorithmic solutions to locate and georeference unknown 1940 enumeration districts. We geocode addresses using the OpenCage API and construct "virtual" enumeration districts by using a convex hull algorithm on those geocoded addresses. We also merge in Home Owners' Loan Corporation (HOLC) redlining maps from the 1930s to demonstrate how 1940 enumeration districts could be used in future work to examine the association between historic redlining and current health. We geocode 7,228,656 1940 census addresses from the largest 191 US cities in 1940 that contained 84% of the 1940 US urban population from the Geographic Reference File and construct 34,472 virtual enumeration districts in areas that had HOLC redlining maps. 18,340 virtual enumeration districts were previously unmapped, covering cities containing an additional 40% of the 1940 US urban population. Where virtual enumeration districts match with previously mapped districts, 96.8% of paired districts share HOLC redlining categorization. Researchers can use algorithmic methods to quickly process, geocode, merge, and analyze large scale repositories of historical documents that provide important data on social determinants of health. These 1940 enumeration district maps could be used with studies such as the Health and Retirement Study, Panel Study for Income Dynamics, and Wisconsin Longitudinal Study.

Race Differences in the Loneliness of Older Adults: Evidence from South Africa

Abstract Although the correlates of loneliness among older adults are very well explored in developed countries, there has been far less quantitative research in developing country contexts. This study helps to redress this research lacuna by investigating the loneliness reports of older adults (> 59 years) in South Africa. The analysis focuses on the considerable variation by race in how adults grow old, including in their living arrangements and socio-economic status. Using national micro-data collected in five waves of the National Income Dynamics Study, the study shows that older white adults report significantly fewer episodes of loneliness than other older adults, although they are far more likely to live alone. The gap in loneliness is greatest between older white and older African adults (who are the most likely to live with others), and it persists in multivariate regressions that control for a range of other differences in their individual and household characteristics. One possible explanation for these persistent race differences, which requires further examination, is that they reflect the importance of cultural factors, which are not adequately modelled, and which influence expectations of social interaction.

Neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and child health: The role of neighborhood mobility networks.

Despite a large body of work on neighborhood effects on health, past studies are limited in their treatment of neighborhoods as largely static spaces with (dis)advantages based primarily on the average characteristics of their residents. In this study, we draw on the triple neighborhood disadvantage perspective to explore how socioeconomic disadvantage in a neighborhood's mobility network uniquely relates to children's overall health levels, independent of residential disadvantage. We investigate this by combining 2019 SafeGraph data on mobility patterns from roughly 40 million U.S. mobile devices with information on children, families, and neighborhoods from the 2015-19 American Community Survey and 2019 Panel Study of Income Dynamics Child Development supplement. We find that mobility-based neighborhood disadvantage (MND) generally predicts child health better than residential neighborhood disadvantage (RND), but associations vary by race and by family income and are contingent on the broader metropolitan context. Our study advances existing research on the effects of mobility networks by shifting from analyzing aggregate-level outcomes to exploring how mobility-based disadvantage affects individual outcomes. Overall, our results indicate that the relationship between neighborhood disadvantage and child health is nuanced and complex. Findings from our study suggest that researchers aiming to understand the influence of neighborhood contexts should examine individuals' residential environments as well as the environments of neighborhoods connected through individuals' everyday mobility.

Income Elasticity of Out-of-Pocket Healthcare Expenditure for Different Provider Types in Bangladesh.

The impact of income on health expenditure has been studied extensively using national-level data; however, studies estimating the household-level income elasticity of health expenditure, particularly by provider types, remain limited. Analysing nationally representative household survey data, we examine outpatient and inpatient out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses across healthcare providers and by various income levels. We employed the Heckman two-step model and OLS regression to estimate income elasticity separately for outpatient and inpatient services. Our findings indicate that income elasticity varies significantly by service type, provider, and income level. Outpatient care at private facilities is a luxury good for the lower-income households, while outpatient expenses for public and informal outpatient care providers remain inelastic across income levels. Private inpatient care is also income inelastic, whereas public inpatient care shows non-uniform elasticity. Overall, lower-income households showed greater elasticity than wealthier ones. The results imply, during income shocks, poorer households switch to cheaper public and informal care. Inpatient care is prioritised over other expenses, increasing the risk of poverty among low-income households. The study suggests the dire need for financial protection measures, particularly for low-income groups, as OOP health expenditure often becomes catastrophic for those households. In addition, higher income resulting from economic growth will increase the demand for private outpatient services, suggesting quality improvement for public health facilities as well as the importance of adapting healthcare policies to evolving income dynamics.

An Exploratory Analysis of Long-Term Effects of Role-Model Volunteering on Young Adults

This study explores the long-term effect of parental role-modeling of volunteer behaviors as children age into adulthood. Although previous research indicates a relationship between concurrent parental and child volunteering, there is very little work that explores the long-term effect of parental volunteering (during a child’s adolescent years) on their adult children. We merged several modules of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics that allowed for significant granularity to explore this question. We found evidence that parental role-modeling during an individual’s adolescent years is associated with higher rates of young adult volunteering. Our findings are intended to provide practical insight to nonprofit organizations on how to strengthen and maintain volunteer rosters.

Microsimulation Analysis of COVID-19 and Inflation Effects on Romanian Household Income Dynamics

In recent years, EU member states have faced two significant crises: the COVID-19 pandemic and high inflation, exacerbated by geopolitical instability. These events have led to a decline in household purchasing power. Our study aims to quantify the impact of these crises on household income dynamics in Romania, using data from the EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions and the EUROMOD tax-benefit microsimulation model. We analyze income changes across demographic segments from 2019 to 2021 (COVID-19 period) and 2021 to 2023 (inflation crisis), focusing on household characteristics such as the presence and number of children, the gender of the household head, and the presence of elderly members. Our findings reveal that while disposable income increased from 2019 to 2021, the poorest 10% experienced the smallest gains. In 2022–2023, inflation eroded these increases, and the lower half of the income distribution struggled with reduced earnings and pensions. Despite this, the Gini coefficient for disposable income decreased from 2019 to 2023, indicating a reduced inequality. Our study highlighted that targeted public policy interventions are essential to support vulnerable households and mitigate the effects of economic shocks.

COVID-19 Pandemic, Poverty and Health Outcomes in South Africa: Do Social Protection Programmes Protect?

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in significant income loss for many people and deepened poverty for individuals and vulnerable populations who were adversely affected through job losses. In South Africa, income loss made it harder to acquire health care and a healthy food, which had a negative impact on health outcomes. This study hypothesised that the COVID-19 shocks disproportionately affects the poor's health, hence the need to know the impact of social protection programmes and interventions through the South Africa Social Security Grant (SASSG). Herewith, we employed the nationally represented, robust and reliable National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS) data set which was conducted in 2017 (pre-COVID-19), with the first wave of the NIDS-Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey (NIDS-CRAM) conducted in 2021 (during COVID-19). The household's per capita total income was used to generate poverty lines, while concentration curves and indices were employed to explain the income-health inequalities. The difference-in-difference with fixed effects model was used to estimate the impact of SASSG on the COVID-19 poverty stressors and self-reported health status. Given the significance and magnitude of institutional variables in determining the socio-economic inequalities in poor health, addressing hunger, income inequality and unemployment slightly helped to mitigate income-health inequalities during the COVID-19 shocks. We found that the social protection intervention in South Africa (SASSG) cushioned the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the context of poverty stressors and self-reported health status. Therefore, we advocate for programmes in South Africa that focus on reducing poverty and health disparities connected to income, as well as more proactive social protection programmes.

Working from Home, COVID-19, and Job Satisfaction

This article examines the impact of the growth in the incidence of working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic on workers’ job satisfaction. Using longitudinal data collected in 2019 and 2021 as part of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, fixed-effects models of job satisfaction are estimated. Changes in the share of total weekly work hours usually worked from home are not found to have any significant association with changes in job satisfaction for men. By contrast, a strong significant positive (but nonlinear) association is found for women, and this relationship is concentrated on women with children. These findings suggest the main benefit of working from home for workers arises from the improved ability to combine work and family responsibilities, something that matters more to women given they continue to shoulder most of the responsibility for house and care work.

Physical activity, and improvement in health-related quality of life among Australian middle-aged and older adults living with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Physical inactivity is a major global public health concern and a recognized risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, the relationship between physical activity and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in people with T2DM using longitudinal data remains underexplored. We aim to identify the improvement in HRQOL associated with physical activity in Australian middle-aged and older adults using population-based longitudinal data. Data for this study were drawn from waves 9, 13, 17, and 21 of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. We constructed an unbalanced panel consisting of2,472 person-year observations from 1,270 unique individuals living with T2DM. We used a random effects Generalized Least Squares (GLS) model to examine the relationship between physical activity and HRQOL in people with T2DM. The regression results showed that physical activity is positively associated with physical component summary (PCS), mental components summary (MCS), and health state utility value (SF-6D). People with T2DM engaging in physical activity less than once or 1 or 2 times per week had a higher mean score for PCS (β = 4.28, 95%CI:3.38, 5.17), MCS (β = 2.36, 95%CI:1.38, 3.34), and SF-6D utility value (β = 0.04, 95%CI:0.03, 0.05) than their counterparts engaged in no physical activity. Similarly, engaging in physical activity three times daily per week had a further elevated mean score for PCS (β = 6.65, 95%CI: 5.72,7.60), MCS (β = 3.75, 95%CI:2.71, 4.79), and SF-6D utility value (β = 0.07, 95%CI: 0.06,0.08). Our results showed that physical activity is positively associated with improved HRQOL among people with T2DM. Public health initiatives should prioritize health education and community programs to promote physical activity across all demographics to enhance HRQOL in people living with T2DM.

Public–private sector wage gaps in Australia: Extent, trends and gender

Using panel data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey, this paper analyses the wage gap between the public and private sectors in Australia from 2001 to 2022. The analysis is conducted at both the national and state levels. We found that, since 2014, the public-sector wage premium (nationally) has increased for women but decreased for men, with women's outcomes driving current trends. Additionally, the public-sector wage premium varies significantly across states, indicating that state-level wage-setting forces are more influential than national ones. Our trend analysis reveals that the premium is neither consistently procyclical nor countercyclical. Furthermore, quantile analysis shows that the premium fluctuates across the wage distribution, though not in a uniform pattern over time.

The Estimation of Health State Utility Values for Psychological Distress in Australia: Implications for Future Economic Evaluations.

Psychological distress is a state of emotional suffering and discomfort that often manifests as anxiety, depression, or other mental health symptoms, impairing daily functioning and hindering concentration, relationships, and work or school performance. We aimed to examine the disutility associated with psychological distress. We used longitudinal data obtained from the Household, Income, and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey. We measured health state utility values (HSUVs) using the Short-Form 6-Dimension (SF-6D) Utility Index and psychological distress using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale. We used longitudinal fixed-effects regression model to examine the effects of psychological distress on HSUVs. The results from fixed-effects panel regression models indicate a negative effect of psychological distress on HSUVs. We found that moderate psychological distress (β=-0.057, 95% CI-0.059 to-0.055) and high psychological distress (β=-0.123, 95% CI-0.126 to-0.121) led to a significant reduction in HSUVs. These findings hold across different subsamples, such as age, gender, and race. By quantifying the reduction in HSUVs due to psychological distress, our study provides valuable data for future economic evaluations of healthcare interventions. The evidence generated from future economic evaluations will assist policymakers in making informed decisions about the cost-effective interventions for treating psychological distress.

Residential mobility responses to home damage caused by floods, cyclones and bushfires in Australia

Recent climate disasters serve as a reminder of the growing—yet overlooked—risk of climate-driven displacement in the Global North. This paper contributes to a nascent literature on disaster-induced mobility in high-income countries by extending the evidence to a new context: Australia. Applying propensity score matching to panel data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, we conduct the first causal assessment of the impact of home damage caused by extreme weather events on residential mobility in Australia. Our findings suggest that from 2009 to 2022, an annual average of 1.6% of Australians aged 15 + (or ~ 308,000 people a year) experienced home damage caused by floods, cyclones or bushfires. Such damage increases the probability of changing address within 1 year by 56%, displacing an annual average of 22,261 Australians. Cumulatively, this amounts to ~ 312,000 people displaced by climate-induced home damage between 2009 and 2022. Importantly, this type of climate-induced mobility is not evenly spread across the population. Contrary to findings from the Global South, we find no evidence of “entrapment effects”, except for uninsured homeowners. Instead, our results indicate that over 80% of climate-displaced Australians come from the bottom two income quartiles, with the poorest 3% accounting for 14% of the displaced population. The most disadvantaged Australians thus face a double vulnerability: they are both more likely to sustain home damage from extreme weather events and more likely to be displaced. These findings bear important implications for adaptation strategies and policy responses to natural disasters.

The mortality implications of a unionized career.

An emerging literature has documented a wide range of protections and benefits that union membership provides for health and wellbeing. However, this literature primarily focuses on point-in-time associations between unionization and health, whereas the theoretical benefits of union membership should accrue over a long period of time through such mechanisms as predictable upward attainment and greater employment security. Moreover, studies have not examined union membership's association with mortality, a core health outcome in medical research. We build on recent research that examines the contributions of a unionized career to middle- and older-adulthood mortality using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics between 1969 and 2019. We track respondents born between 1935 and 1965 and predict mortality using discrete time hazard regression models. We find that more time spent in a union predicts lower rates of mortality, with an additional year as a union member decreasing the odds of mortality by about 1.5%. This magnitude is about half that of consistent attachment to paid employment. Moreover, we find that male, White, and less educated respondents were most protected by unionized careers, while union protection was found between ages 41 and 67. Our findings extend knowledge of the noneconomic consequences of union benefits and point to a source of emerging health disparities among older adults.

Relations between adolescent perceptions of household chaos and externalizing and internalizing behaviors in low- and middle-income families.

A large body of literature has established that chaos in the home environment, characterized by high levels of disorganization, lack of household routine, crowding, noise, and unpredictability, undermines social-emotional and behavioral development in early childhood. It is less clear whether household chaos is linked to elevated risk for behavior problems in adolescence. The aims of this study were 3fold: (1) characterize the variability of adolescent and caregiver reports of household chaos over time; (2) examine associations among caregiver and adolescent reports of chaos over a 9-month period; (3) consider how between- and within- individual variability in household chaos predicts adolescent externalizing and internalizing problems. This study drew data from the Family Income Dynamics study, a 9-month longitudinal study. Participants included 104 adolescents between 14 and 16 years old (55% female; M age = 14.85) and their caregiver (92% female) from low- and middle-income families. Results showed that adolescent-reports of household chaos were more variable over time compared to caregivers' reports. Adolescent-reports of household chaos had positive within- and between-level associations with externalizing problems and between-level associations with internalizing, while caregiver-reports of chaos had no links to behavior. This work highlights the importance of adolescents' own perceptions of household chaos when considering its links to adolescent development.

Food insecurity and dementia risk in US older adults: results from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics

AbstractBackgroundGrowing research suggests that food insecurity is associated with worse cognitive functioning; however, longitudinal studies are needed to examine food insecurity and dementia risk.MethodsUsing data from the 2013‐2021 Panel Study of Income Dynamics, the longest running nationally representative household panel survey, we examined the effects of food insecurity on dementia risk among 3,232 adults (≥65 years). Food insecurity was assessed biennially using the US Household Food Security Survey Module since 2015. Dementia risk was assessed bienially using the Eight Item Interview to Differentiate Aging and Dementia (AD8) since 2017. We used inverse probability weighting and marginal structural models to account for the time‐varying nature of food insecurity and sociodemographic and health confounders.ResultsIn the sample of US households with older adults (mean age (SE), 69.7 (0.2) years, 57% female), the weighted prevalence of food insecurity ranged from 5.3‐7.0% and the weighted prevalence of dementia risk ranged from 20.7‐21.8%. After accounting for baseline and time‐varying confounders, there was a two‐fold association between food insecurity and dementia risk (OR 2.11, 95% CI 1.12, 3.98). In sensitivity analyses, results were similar when expanding the exposure definition to include milder forms of food insecurity, and the outcome definition to include informant‐reported memory loss. Associations were not further modified by sex, race and ethnicity, or household participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.ConclusionsFood insecurity is a modifiable social determinant of health. Interventions and policies are needed to reduce food insecurity and promote healthy aging for older adults

Reparations for African Enslavement in the U.S. and Black Survival Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics.

Activists, policymakers, and scholars increasingly have advocated for reparations payments to Black Americans to redress the harms of enslavement and discriminatory practices that followed. This study examined the effects of a hypothetical monetary reparations intervention on all-cause premature and overall mortality among Black adults in the U.S. We used the Black-white wealth gap to calculate monetary costs, modeling the effects of wealth influxes of $905,426.10 (in 2019 USD) to each Black household (the amount necessary to eliminate the mean Black-white wealth gap), distributed over 10 years. We applied a target trial emulation framework to data in the Panel Study on Income Dynamics (n=16,010). Each Black household head or spouse/partner was followed from baseline until death, incomplete follow-up, 18 years after baseline, or the end of follow-up in 2019, whichever occurred first. Using the g-formula to account for time-fixed and time-varying confounders, we found a 29% reduction in premature mortality and a 25.6% reduction in overall mortality among Black adults under the reparations intervention. Our findings provide evidence that reparations are a lifesaving and justice-promoting social policy that could significantly contribute to efforts to eliminate health inequities.

Australian Parental Leave Policy, Employers' Cognitive Bias, and Mothers' Wages: Penalty or Premium?

ABSTRACTThis paper utilizes a natural experiment created by Australia's first national mandate for paid parental leave in 2011, to investigate employer‐side mechanisms in motherhood wage penalties. Drawing on literature on cognitive bias, we hypothesize that maternity leave taking behaviors could trigger employer discrimination. We test this proposition by comparing whether and how four types of leave‐taking behaviors affect the wage prospects of working mothers. Using fixed effect models with lagged dependent variables and nationally representative panel data, the Household Income and Labor Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) for the period 2005–2019, this study reveals that before the mandate, mothers who had to use unpaid leave due to ineligibility for employer‐funded leave suffered pay penalties. After the mandate, mothers who forwent paid leave received pay premiums. Our study contributes to debates about parental leave policy and gender discrimination in the labor market by indicating that employers interpret contrasting leave taking behaviors differently, and reward employees in accordance with what they believe maternity leave behaviors imply about working mothers' conformity to the “ideal worker” norm.