Unobserved Individual Characteristics Research Articles

Relative income concerns and smoking behaviour: The role of unobserved heterogeneity.

Status or relative concerns (as in the idiom 'keeping up with the Joneses') can lead to negative feelings such as stress and anxiety. One key question is whether these concerns relate to daily smoking behaviour. The conjecture is that status concerns and the accompanying stress and anxiety might be associated with a higher likelihood of smoking and a higher number of cigarettes smoked, generating a higher instant physical reward and reducing the stress and anxiety. The literature aiming to identify this relationship focuses mostly on a single cross section of individuals, ignoring potential differences in unobserved characteristics of smokers and non-smokers (e.g., genetic factors, personality differences, parental smoking during childhood). This paper investigates the role of unobserved individual characteristics on this relationship, which has not been done in previous studies. Using a long panel data of smoking information in Germany and a variety of panel data model specifications, we show that there is no statistically significant association between relative income concerns and the likelihood of smoking or the number of cigarettes smoked among the overall population. We find a positive and significant relationship only among people who smoked at least one cigarette in the past. A 10% appreciation in the income of comparable other individuals relates to about 3.5 more cigarettes per month among these people. Importantly, failing to allow for the unobserved influences of smoking leads to three times larger estimates than when using models with unobserved factors correlating to the income and smoking behaviour. The results are robust with respect to alternative assumptions and specifications where we use different functional forms of unobserved heterogeneity, definitions of relative concerns, incomes, and reference groups.

Does economic self‐interest determine public attitudes toward immigrants? An econometric case study in Japan

AbstractWe examine two economic self‐interest hypotheses regarding the determinants of public attitudes toward immigrants: (1) the labor market hypothesis, which states that the employment and wage impacts of immigration determine the public attitudes, and (2) the welfare state hypothesis, which states that natives hold negative perceptions of immigrants due to concerns that they may strain the country's welfare budget. The first hypothesis predicts that natives' education will affect pro‐immigrant attitudes more positively when immigrants come from lower income countries. The second hypothesis predicts that natives' income affects the pro‐immigrant attitudes more negatively when immigrants come from lower income countries. We use the Japanese General Social Survey, which asks respondents' tolerance toward immigrants from different countries, allowing us to control for unobserved individual characteristics through a method akin to the fixed effect estimation. Our results indicate no difference in the effects of education and income on pro‐immigrant attitudes regardless of whether immigrants come from high‐ or low‐income countries. We conclude that economic self‐interest does not explain Japanese public attitudes toward immigrants. We discuss the policy implications about how to improve public attitudes toward immigrants.

Contribution of compositional changes in the workforce to sickness absence trends in Finland

In this study, we assessed whether the long-term decrease in sickness absences in Finland is explained by observed and unobserved compositional changes in the workforce. Utilizing register-based panel data on Finnish wage earners aged 30–62, we examined the annual onset of compensated sickness absence (granted after 10 weekdays) in the period 2005–2016. We applied random effects models adjusting for changes in the observed sociodemographic and occupational characteristics of the study population. We also applied fixed effects models, with corrections of the estimates for cohort ageing, to additionally account for the unobserved time-invariant characteristics of the study population over the years. Of the observed characteristics, increasing educational level partly explained the decreasing trend in sickness absences, and the further contribution of the occupational class was weak. Additionally, accounting for unobserved individual characteristics further explained the decreasing trend in sickness absences among those aged 30–47 years and led to a reverse increasing trend among those aged 48–62 years irrespective of sex and employment sector. Particularly for those over 47 years old, the decrease in sickness absences appeared to be more strongly influenced by compositional changes in characteristics that are established before fully entering the labour market — such as educational level as well as unmeasured individual characteristics that remain unchanged after childhood and early adulthood — than in the work environment or other factors contributing at working age. Sickness absence trends fluctuated during economic cycles, which did not appear to be explained by immediate changes in the observed or unobserved characteristics. Different mechanisms are likely to explain long-term sickness absence trends and trends around economic cycles. Attempts to improve work ability and labour market inclusion in long-term should rely more on increasing educational levels among the workforce and on interventions carried out early during the life course.

The impact of overweight and obesity on unemployment duration among young American workers

Obesity has a profound effect on the working careers of Americans. Prior studies pertaining to workers in other countries report that obese women experienced longer spells of unemployment than normal weight peers. However, the effect of obesity on unemployment duration has not been studied for American workers. To address this gap in the literature, we report estimates of the effects of overweight and obesity from a proportional hazards model of unemployment duration that controls for unobserved individual characteristics. Using a data sample of young workers drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1997), our findings indicate that, on average, overweight and obese job seekers experienced significantly longer spells of unemployment. The effects differed by race, sex, and ethnicity: Overweight and obese White and Black women experienced significantly longer spells than White women with normal body mass index (BMI) levels. Although overweight White and Black men had longer unemployment spells compared to White men with normal BMI levels, the magnitudes were smaller than those for White and Black women. In contrast, overweight Hispanic women had shorter duration of unemployment spells compared to White women with normal BMI levels.

Health literacy and older adults: Findings from a national population-based survey.

With an ageing population and growing complexity and fragmentation of health care systems, health literacy is increasingly important in managing health. This study investigated health literacy strengths and challenges reported by older Australians (people aged 65 or over) and identified how socio-demographic and health factors related to their health literacy profiles. The sample comprised 1578 individuals responding to the Australian Government's 2018 Health Literacy Survey, conducted between January and August. Regression modelling was used to estimate the association between each of nine domains of the Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ) and individual socio-demographic and health characteristics. The model allowed for correlation between HLQ scores that was linked to unobserved characteristics of individuals. Across the health literacy domains, few individuals received mean scores in the lowest score range. Key individual characteristics associated with higher health literacy were increasing age, English proficiency, higher education levels, better self-assessed health and having certain chronic conditions (cancer, hypertension and arthritis). Our findings suggest that, among those aged 65 or over, being older or living with chronic illnesses were associated with greater confidence in engaging with providers, accessing information and navigating health services compared to individuals aged 65-69 and those older individuals without chronic illness. Lower health literacy was associated with psychological distress and low English proficiency. SO WHAT?: Interventions to improve individual health literacy and organisation health literacy responsiveness to minimise complexity of the Australian health system are required. This may enhance uptake and use of health information and services for the underserviced members of the community.

Do public pension programmes reduce elderly poverty in China?

AbstractThis paper studies the impact of public programmes aiming to cover the entire population in China on elderly poverty in both rural and urban China. Using the three rounds of panel data based on the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study in 2011–2015, we examine whether public pension programmes reduced elderly poverty, comprehensively defined to cover both unidimensional and multidimensional poverty indices of the households and individuals. To utilise the longitudinal nature of the data, we apply the robust fixed‐effects (FE) model with propensity score matching (PSM) and the FE quantile model with PSM taking into account the unobservable individual characteristics. Our results show that public pension programmes reduced poverty in monetary and non‐monetary terms in rural areas, while the effect on labour market is not significant. The panel quantile regression results suggest that the programmes decreased inequality in both monetary and non‐monetary dimensions. However, poverty‐reducing and inequality‐reducing effects are not observed in urban areas. Our results provide strong evidence to underscore the success of the Chinese public pension programme in reducing poverty and inequality in both rural and urban areas.

THE RECIPROCAL RELATIONSHIP OF SELF-RATED HEALTH AND INSTRUMENTAL HELP FROM CHILDREN: EVIDENCE FROM GERMANY

Abstract Prior research suggests that receiving support from children may promote health among ageing parents. Poor health, however, often precedes the need for support. Yet, research linking instrumental support and self-rated health (SRH) has been deficient in two regards: First, little research has addressed the relationship between instrumental support and SRH simultaneously using longitudinal data. Second, only few studies, have accounted for unobserved confounders (e.g. within-person effects) and potential reverse causality. Recently developed dynamic panel models with fixed effects provide an opportunity to address these methodological issues. Using four waves of the German Ageing Survey (DEAS) among 4,496 adults aged 40 years and older, the current study investigates the potential bidirectional relationship between instrumental support and SRH. I find that prior receipt of instrumental support from children is not a significant predictor of future reported poor SRH. Similarly, previous poor SRH does not significantly predict the likelihood of receiving instrumental support from children at follow-up. Independent of older adults’ SRH, however, prior receipt of instrumental support is a statistically significant predictor of receiving support at follow-up. Regardless of receiving children’s instrumental support, poor SRH in the past predicts poor SRH in the future. The results shed new light on prior bidirectional associations between SRH and instrumental support in the German context. Previous results may be partly explained by a lack of controls for unobserved individual characteristics. The findings suggest that policy interventions may not exclusively rely on older adults’ receipt of support from children in the event of health declines.

Longitudinal Associations Between Arts Engagement and Flourishing in Young Adults: A Fixed Effects Analysis of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics

There is growing evidence on the impact of arts engagement on flourishing. However, social gradients in arts engagement and flourishing may have led to an overestimation of this impact, and there is a lack of longitudinal research in young people. We aimed to test the longitudinal associations between arts engagement and flourishing in emerging adults, accounting for observed and unobserved individual characteristics. We included 3,333 participants aged 18–28 from the Transition into Adulthood Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. We measured flourishing across emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing, and frequency of engagement in artistic, musical, or theatrical organized activities, biennially 2005–2019. We analyzed data using fixed effects regression and Arellano-Bond methods to control for bidirectional relationships. Increases in arts engagement were associated with increases in flourishing, before and after adjusting for time-varying confounders. This relationship was driven by enhanced psychological and social wellbeing. After controlling for bidirectionality, increases in arts engagement predicted subsequent improvements in flourishing and social wellbeing. In sensitivity analyses, residential area was a moderator; arts engagement was only associated with increased flourishing in metropolitan (and not non-metropolitan) areas. Increases in arts engagement are associated with enhanced flourishing within individuals, and these associations hold across many subgroups of the population. Those in non-metropolitan areas may have fewer opportunities for arts engagement. Future work must consider how funding can be distributed to ensure that the arts are accessible across communities and geographical areas, providing all young people with opportunities to experience their potential benefits.

Educational attainment and emotional well-being in adolescence and adulthood

Education has been conceptualized as a causal factor leading to emotional well-being. However, it is also possible that some of the effect of education may be due to selection factors. Analyzing data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (n ​= ​10,908), we asked: to what extent does educational attainment increase emotional well-being once stable observed and unobserved individual characteristics are accounted for? Findings from fixed effects models showed that attaining a college degree was associated with greater emotional well-being. However, interactions with gender indicate that the positive association with emotional well-being is primarily for women, although a small negative association between completing college and depressive affect was found for men. These findings point to unmeasured confounding factors as motivating some of the association between educational attainment and emotional well-being among adolescents and adults.

Relative deprivation in Tanzania: Relative concerns and empathy

This paper examines the importance of relative deprivation in Tanzania, a poor African country, using three waves of the Tanzanian National Panel Survey. We contribute to earlier literature in Africa by controlling for time persistent unobservable individual characteristics (panel data) and, most important, by using two measures of satisfaction (life and financial satisfaction), two definitions of the reference group, and testing different hypothesis. By comparing results between satisfaction measures and across definitions of reference groups we can understand the mechanisms through which comparisons work in a poor setting. In contrast with earlier literature, we find strong evidence of relative deprivation in financial satisfaction of all individuals in Tanzania, and evidence for life satisfaction only for individuals with weaker ties with their community. For those with strong ties (45% of our total sample; 52% of the rural sample), we find evidence of a positive correlation between life satisfaction and the leave-out mean consumption of close neighbors and argue that this can be explained by feelings of empathy. We argue in favor of taking comparisons to others into account when assessing and introducing welfare policies, also in less developed countries.

Length of Stay Analysis of COVID-19 Hospitalizations Using a Count Regression Model and Quantile Regression: A Study in Bologna, Italy.

This study aimed to identify and explore the hospital admission risk factors associated with the length of stay (LoS) by applying a relatively novel statistical method for count data using predictors among COVID-19 patients in Bologna, Italy. The second goal of this study was to model the LoS of COVID patients to understand which covariates significantly influenced it and identify the potential risk factors associated with LoS in Bolognese hospitals from 1 February 2020 to 10 May 2021. The clinical settings we focused on were the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and ordinary hospitalization, including low-intensity stays. We used Poisson, negative binomial (NB), Hurdle–Poisson, and Hurdle–NB regression models to model the LoS. The fitted models were compared using the Akaike information criterion (AIC), Vuong’s test criteria, and Rootograms. We also used quantile regression to model the effects of covariates on the quantile values of the response variable (LoS) using a Poisson distribution, and to explore a range of conditional quantile functions, thereby exposing various forms of conditional heterogeneity and controlling for unobserved individual characteristics. Based on the chosen performance criteria, Hurdle–NB provided the best fit. As an output from the model, we found significant changes in average LoS for each predictor. Compared with ordinary hospitalization and low-intensity stays, the ICU setting increased the average LoS by 1.84-fold. Being hospitalized in long-term hospitals was another contributing factor for LoS, increasing the average LoS by 1.58 compared with regular hospitals. When compared with the age group [50, 60) chosen as the reference, the average LoS decreased in the age groups [0, 10), [30, 40), and [40, 50), and increased in the oldest age group [80, 102). Compared with the second wave, which was chosen as the reference, the third wave did not significantly affect the average LoS, whereas it increased by 1.11-fold during the first wave and decreased by 0.77-fold during out-wave periods. The results of the quantile regression showed that covariates related to the ICU setting, hospitals with longer hospitalization, the first wave, and the out-waves were statistically significant for all the modeled quantiles. The results obtained from our study can help us to focus on the risk factors that lead to an increased LoS among COVID-19 patients and benchmark different models that can be adopted for these analyses.

Associations of employment sector and occupational exposures with full and part-time sickness absence: random and fixed effects analyses on panel data.

ObjectiveWe aimed to investigate the influence of unobserved individual characteristics in explaining the effects of work-related factors on full (fSA) and part-time sickness absence (pSA).MethodsWe used register-based panel data for the period 2005–2016 on a 70% random sample of the Finnish working-age population. The relationships between employment sector and occupational exposures (% exposed to physically heavy work and job control score based on job exposure matrices) and the annual onset of fSA and pSA were investigated among men and women. First, random effects (RE) models were applied controlling for observed sociodemographic factors and then fixed effects (FE) models that examine within-individual changes over time and thereby further account for unobserved time-invariant individual characteristics.ResultsIn the RE analyses, public employment sector, physically heavy work and lower job control each increased the use of fSA and pSA among both genders. When unobserved individual characteristics were controlled for with the FE models, the effects on fSA attenuated. For pSA, the effects of employment sector and physical heaviness of work among women even reversed. The effect of lower job control on pSA remained especially among women.ConclusionsThe role of individuals’ unobserved characteristics in explaining the effects of work-related factors on SA should not be neglected. The effects of work-related factors are likely to be overestimated when using traditional approaches that do not account for unobserved confounding, ie, selection of individuals with a high likelihood of SA into particular work environments.

Locus of Control and Job Satisfaction in Australia: The Mediating Role of Job Perception

This paper investigates the relationship between locus of control and job satisfaction and its domains, using the Household, Income and Labor Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. Using fixed effects (FE) panel data estimation to control for unobserved individual characteristics, the results first show that internal locus of control is associated with a higher level of overall job satisfaction and other aspects of satisfaction at the workplace. Moreover, the study examines whether perceptions of one's job mediate the association between locus of control and job satisfaction. The findings indicate that internal locus of control correlates with more positive perceptions of aspects of their job, such as a higher level of job security and less stress-related illness, improving job satisfaction. Therefore, this research highlights the role of locus of control in promoting higher job satisfaction, underlining that personality characteristics are a potential asset in the workplace.

Exporting and the wage premium: The case of South African manufacturing firms

AbstractThere is much literature to support the view that exporters (both developed and developing countries) pay higher wages than nonexporters. While this so‐called export wage premium has also been found to be prevalent in South Africa, it has not been thoroughly researched, with studies to date having relied on cross‐sectional sample data rather than on the population of firms and workers. Using a newly constructed employer–employee matched panel data set on South African manufacturing firms, the study examined the factors contributing to the export wage premium in these firms—from firm, individual, and job characteristics (both observable and unobservable) to firms’ distribution of wages and export destinations (e.g., SACU‐only [Firms exporting only to Southern African Customs Union countries], Africa‐only [Firms exporting only to African countries], or international [Firms exporting to both African and non‐African countries]). One of the key findings was that the export wage premium is not about being labeled an exporter. It is, however, because of the “type of firm” (unobservable firm characteristics) exporters are, the “type of workers” (unobservable individual characteristics) they employ, and the “type of jobs” (unobservable job characteristics) they create. Policymakers should therefore be aware that simply expanding the pool of exporters will not necessarily give momentum to the export wage premium phenomenon. Rather, policy measures should be aimed at increasing firm‐level productivity.

Impact of Oral Voriconazole As Prophylaxis during Intensive Chemotherapy for Adult Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A Retrospective Cohort Study Using Japanese Administrative Database

BackgroundPrevention of invasive fungal infections (IFIs) during chemotherapy is an important issue for patients with hematologic malignancies. Although preventive effects of antifungal drugs on hematological stem cell transplantation (HSCT) has been reported, the appropriate approach for prophylaxis of IFIs during intensive chemotherapy for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has been still unclear. To solve this issue, we analyzed the Diagnosis Procedure Combination/Per-Diem Payment System (DPC/PDPS) database instituted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan as a payment system for medical services, which contains a large nationwide inpatient administrative data. The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of oral voriconazole (VRCZ) as prophylaxis of IFIs in adult AML patients undergoing intensive chemotherapy.MethodsThis is a retrospective cohort study analyzing data of which were extracted from the DPC database collected from July 2010 to June 2015. The prophylactic usage of oral antifungal drugs is defined as administration of these drugs for more than 3 consecutive days prescribed within 3 days after the onset of chemotherapy. The selection criteria were as follows: patients diagnosed as AML, aged 18 years or older, conducted intensive chemotherapy under aseptic management, and administrated either of oral fluconazole (FLCZ), itraconazole (ITCZ) or VRCZ for the prophylactic usage defined as above. The data for HSCT were excluded. The main analyses were conducted in these 2 groups: the group of patients administrated oral VRCZ, and the other oral azoles (FLCZ or ITCZ). Primary outcome was the intravenous antifungal drug usage within 30 days after the onset of chemotherapy. Subgroup analyses were performed in the following categories: 1) VRCZ group vs FLCZ group/VRCZ group vs ITCZ group; 2) Age < 65/ Age ≥ 65. Secondary outcomes were 1) length of hospital stay, and 2) in-hospital mortality. The log-transformed values were used for analyses of length of hospital stay because its distribution was right-skewed. Panel instrumental variable (IV) method was carried out to address unobserved time-invariant characteristics of individuals, time-variant factors, and the endogeneity due to the unmeasured bias.ResultsA total of 63,197 inpatient data of 923 hospitals for AML patients aged 18 years or older were screened. Finally, 10,083 data of 413 hospitals, including 655 in VRCZ group, 4,445 in FLCZ group, and 4,983 in ITCZ group, were met to the selection criteria. The result of panel IV approach showed that prophylactic administration of oral VRCZ was significantly associated with the reduction of intravenous antifungal drug usage within 30 days after the onset of chemotherapy compared to the other azoles (RD −0.13, 95%CI −0.22 to −0.03, p = 0.012). It was also associated with the shortening the log-transformed value of length of hospital stay compared to the other oral azoles (RD −0.11, 95%CI −0.23 to −0.00, p = 0.043), but not with in-hospital mortality (RD 0.02, 95%CI −0.04 to 0.08, p = 0.513). In the subgroup analyses, prophylactic administration of oral VRCZ was significantly associated with the reduction of intravenous antifungal drug usage compared with FLCZ (RD −0.18, 95%CI −0.28 to −0.08, p < 0.001), but not with ITCZ (RD −0.07, 95%CI −0.16 to 0.34, p = 0.150). When the data was analyzed by age groups, it was significantly associated with the reduction of intravenous antifungal drug usage in patients under the age of 65 (RD −0.18, 95%CI −0.35 to −0.02, p = 0.033), but not in patients aged 65 years or older (RD −0.09, 95%CI −0.22 to 0.04, p = 0.196) compared to the other azoles.ConclusionsBy analyzing the large nationwide database, the present results revealed that the prophylactic administration of oral VRCZ would be effective for reducing the intravenous antifungal drug usage and shortening of hospital stay, which might contribute to reduction of IFIs and improvement of quality of life especially for young AML patients receiving the intensive chemotherapy. DisclosuresYoshida:Bristol-Myers Squibb: Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; ONO PHARMACEUTICAL CO., LTD.: Honoraria; Nippon Kayaku Co.,Ltd.: Honoraria.

How does income affect mental health and health behaviours? A quasi-experimental study of the earned income tax credit

BackgroundAlthough research has repeatedly demonstrated the association between poverty, mental health, and health behaviours, there is limited evidence on the effects of interventions to improve these outcomes by addressing poverty...

Smartphone use and academic performance: First evidence from longitudinal data

To study the causal impact of smartphone use on academic performance, we collected – for the first time worldwide – longitudinal data on students’ smartphone use and educational performance. For three consecutive years, we surveyed all students attending classes in 11 different study programmes at two Belgian universities on general smartphone use and other drivers of academic achievement. These survey data were merged with the exam scores of these students. We analysed the resulting data by means of panel data random-effects estimation controlling for unobserved individual characteristics. A 1 SD increase in overall smartphone use results in a decrease of 0.349 points (out of 20) and a decrease of 2.616 percentage points in the fraction of exams passed.

Estimation of Peer Effects in Endogenous Social Networks: Control Function Approach

Abstract We propose methods of estimating the linear-in-means model of peer effects in which the peer group, defined by a social network, is endogenous in the outcome equation for peer effects. Endogeneity is due to unobservable individual characteristics that influence both link formation in the network and the outcome of interest. We propose two estimators of the peer effect equation that control for the endogeneity of the social connections using a control function approach. We leave the functional form of the control function unspecified, estimate the model using a sieve semiparametric approach and establish asymptotics of the semiparametric estimator.

Associations of neighborhood disadvantage and offender concentration with criminal behavior: Between-within analysis in Finnish registry data

The association between neighborhood disadvantage and crime has been extensively studied, but most studies have relied on cross-sectional data and have been unable to separate potential effects of the neighborhood from selection effects. We examined how neighborhood disadvantage and offender concentration are associated with criminal behavior while accounting for selection effects due to unobserved time-invariant characteristics of the individuals. We used a registry-based longitudinal dataset that included all children aged 0–14 living in Finland at the end of year 2000 with follow-up until the end of 2017 for criminal offences committed at ages 18–31 years (n = 510,189). Using multilevel logistic regression with a between-within approach we examined whether neighborhoods differed in criminal behavior and whether within-individual changes in neighborhood disadvantage and offender concentration were associated with within-individual changes in criminal behavior. Our results indicated strong associations of most measures of neighborhood disadvantage and offender concentration with criminal behavior between individuals. The within-individual estimates accounting for selection related to unobserved individual characteristics were mostly non-significant with the exception of higher neighborhood disadvantage being associated with increased risk for violent crimes. Our findings suggest that criminal behavior is better explained by individual characteristics than by causal effects of neighborhoods.

Elder care and paid work: gender differences in the relationship between unpaid elder care work and employment in Bulgaria

Care of elderly family members affects the welfare of the elderly and caregivers and has macroeconomic implications. In Eastern Europe, aging populations combined with under-developed care policy increase family care burdens, but the impact of care on labour force participation is understudied in this context. Using two waves of the Generations and Gender survey, we estimate the impact of care demand on paid employment in Bulgaria. We find that living with an elderly or disabled parent has a negative impact on employment for women and that this impact cannot be explained by reverse causality or unobserved individual characteristics. More developed care policy would benefit caregivers and would be likely to generate broader fiscal benefits.