Income, income, or income? The effects of different income measures on health in a national survey

Siegfried Geyer (1)

1 Medical Sociology Unit, Hannover Medical School

Background: The effects of six income types (household post- government income, OECD- weighted household post- government income, individual net income, corrected monthly household income, and household net income from wages) on subjective health were compared in order to examine to what extent their effects are different. Methods: Data from the German Socio- Economic Panel 2007 were used. The analyses were based on the subsample of 30 to 60 year old women and men (N=11,471), incomes were divided into 10 groups of equal size. In addition education, gender, and age are considered. Results: The effects of the household incomes were similar by ranging from OR=3.1 to 3.7. For individual income the effect was lower (OR=2.1). This has to be interpreted against the backdrop of a large number of subjects with missing income information. This group consists of not employed, unemployed, and retired individuals. Conclusion: The five types of household incomes can be considered as interchangeable with respect to their effects on subjective health. In empirical studies household-based measures are appropriate if material ressources or the purchasing power of households shall be depicted. Individual income is a different measure that should be chosen if the individual position in terms of status or material success is to be measured.

Mots clés: HEALTH SURVEYS; SOCIAL EPIDEMIOLOGY; SOCIAL INEQUALITIES

Siegfried Geyer. Income, income, or income? The effects of different income measures on health in a national survey. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2010, 65 (6), pp.491. ⟨10.1136/jech.2009.103390⟩. ⟨hal-00592044⟩