Cookson, Richard Andrew orcid.org/0000-0003-0052-996X, Parra Mujica, Fiorella orcid.org/0000-0002-0974-7528, Johnson, Elliott Aidan et al. (2 more authors) (2023) Understanding the relationship between income and mental health among 16- to 24-year-olds:Analysis of 10 waves (2009–2020) of Understanding Society to enable modelling of income interventions. PLOS ONE. e0279845. ISSN 1932-6203
Abstract
A substantial body of evidence suggests that young people, including those at the crucial transition points between 16 and 24, now face severe mental health challenges. In this article, we analyse data from 10 waves of a major UK longitudinal household cohort study, Understanding Society, to examine the relationship between income and anxiety and depression among 16- to 24-year-olds. Using random effects logistic regression (Model 1) allowing for whether the individual was depressed in the previous period as well as sex, age, ethnicity, whether the individual was born in the UK, region, rurality, highest qualification, marital status, employment status and attrition, we find a significant and inversely monotonic adjusted association between average net equivalised household income quintiles and clinical threshold levels of depressive symptoms SF-12 Mental Component Summary (MCS score ≤45.6). This means that being in a higher income group is associated with a reduced likelihood of clinically significant depressive symptoms, allowing for observable confounding variables. Using a ‘within-between’ model (Model 2), we find that apart from among those with the very highest incomes, increases in average net equivalised household income over the course of childhood and adolescence are significantly associated with reduced symptoms of anxiety and depression as measured by a higher SF-12 MCS score. Compared with previous reviews, the data presented here provides an estimate of the magnitude of effect that helps facilitate microsimulation modelling of impact on anxiety and depression from changes in socioeconomic circumstances. This enables a more detailed and complete understanding of the types of socioeconomic intervention that might begin to address some of the causes of youth mental health problems.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2023 Parra-Mujica et al. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Social Sciences (York) > Centre for Health Economics (York) The University of York > Faculty of Sciences (York) > Health Sciences (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 23 Mar 2023 15:20 |
Last Modified: | 18 Oct 2024 00:03 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0279845 |
Status: | Published |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1371/journal.pone.0279845 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:197677 |
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Filename: journal.pone.0279845.pdf
Description: Understanding the relationship between income and mental health among 16- to 24-year-olds: Analysis of 10 waves (2009–2020) of Understanding Society to enable modelling of income interventions.
Licence: CC-BY 2.5