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Schafer MH. Social contact during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of long-term connectedness and cumulative inequality in later life. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2024; 120:103007. [PMID: 38763541 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2024.103007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Revised: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/21/2024]
Abstract
Though the COVID-19 crisis put many older adults at sudden risk of social isolation, the pandemic was far from the "great equalizer" some pundits and politicians initially claimed it would be. Drawing from Cumulative Inequality Theory, I consider how long-run patterns of social dis/connectedness contextualize key disparities in social contact that manifested during the pandemic. I incorporate data from four rounds of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (2005-2021), constructing multiple operationalizations of connectedness accumulation across pre-COVID years and examining several types of social contact during the pandemic, both in-person and remote. Results from ordered logistic regression show that those most durably connected were especially likely to incorporate digital tools for maintaining contact with family and friends. On the other hand, people experiencing more bouts of social disconnection were least likely to see friends during the pandemic, and were yet relatively tolerant of that level of engagement. Even while many older people's level of social dis/connectedness fluctuates over the course of 15 years, it was long-run accumulation patterns-not conditions observed most recently-that best explain their experience of social contact during the pandemic. Findings point to the role of crises in perpetuating and exacerbating key axes of inequality, and suggest points of attention and intervention in COVID's aftermath.
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Jiménez-Solomon O, Irwin G, Melanie W, Christopher W. When money and mental health problems pile up: The reciprocal relationship between income and psychological distress. SSM Popul Health 2024; 25:101624. [PMID: 38380052 PMCID: PMC10876910 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2024.101624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2023] [Revised: 02/05/2024] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Longitudinal studies suggest that socioeconomic status (SES) and mental health have a bidirectional relationship such that SES declines lead to a deterioration of mental health (social causation), while worsening mental health leads to SES declines (social drift). However, the dynamic relationship between income and psychological distress has not been sufficiently studied. Methods We use cross-lagged panel models with unit fixed effects (FE-CLPM) and data from a five-wave representative panel (n = 3103) of working-age (18-64) New York City adults. Yearly measures include individual earnings, family income (income-to-needs), and psychological distress. We also examine effects by age, gender, education, and racial/ethnic identification. Results We find significant bidirectional effects between earnings and distress. Increases in past-year individual earnings decrease past-month psychological distress (social causation effect [SCE], standardized β= -0.07) and increases in psychological distress reduce next-year individual earnings (social drift effect [SDE], β= -0.03). Family income and distress only have a unidirectional relationship from past-year family income to distress (SCE, β= -.03). Strongest evidence of bidirectional effects between earnings and distress is for prime working-age individuals (SCE, β= -0.1; SDE, β= -0.03), those with less than bachelor's degrees (SCE, β= -0.08; SDE, β= -0.05), and Hispanics (SCE, β= -0.06; SDE, β= -0.08). We also find evidence of reciprocal effects between family income and distress for women (SCE, β= -0.03; SDE, β= -0.05), and Hispanics (SDE, β= -0.04; SDE, β= -0.08). Conclusions Individual earnings, which are labor market indicators, may be stronger social determinants of mental health than family income. However, important differences in social causation and social drift effects exist across groups by age, education, gender, and racial/ethnic identities. Future research should examine the types of policies that may buffer the mental health impact of negative income shocks and the declines in income associated with worsening mental health, especially among the most vulnerable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oscar Jiménez-Solomon
- Center on Poverty and Social Policy, School of Social Work, Columbia University, 1255 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY, 10027, USA
- New York State Center of Excellence for Cultural Competence, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, 1051 Riverside Drive, Unit 69, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Garfinkel Irwin
- Center on Poverty and Social Policy, School of Social Work, Columbia University, 1255 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY, 10027, USA
| | - Wall Melanie
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, 1051 Riverside Drive, Unit 48, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Department of Biostatistics, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 West 168th Street, R207, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Wimer Christopher
- Center on Poverty and Social Policy, School of Social Work, Columbia University, 1255 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY, 10027, USA
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Rauf T. Differential sensitivity to adversity by income: Evidence from a study of Bereavement. SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH 2023; 115:102920. [PMID: 37858363 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2023.102920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2023] [Revised: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Adverse life events are often understood as having negative consequences for mental health via objective hardships, which are worse for persons with less income. But adversity can also affect mental health via more subjective mechanisms, and here, it is possible that persons with higher income will exhibit greater psychological sensitivity to negative events, for various reasons. Drawing on multiple sociological literatures, this article theorizes potential mechanisms of increasing sensitivity with income. The proposition of differential sensitivity is tested using the strategic case of spousal and parental bereavement among older US adults. The analyses find consistent evidence of increasing sensitivity of depressive symptoms with income. A series of robustness checks indicate that findings are not due to endogenous or antecedent selection. Further, exploratory analyses of mechanisms suggest that higher sensitivity among the affluent was driven by greater expectations and better relationship quality with the deceased. These findings problematize the conceptualization and assessment of human suffering in economically stratified societies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamkinat Rauf
- Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1180 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI, 53706, USA.
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Liang Y. The mediating effect of allostatic load on the association between life course socioeconomic disadvantage and chronic pain: a prospective finding from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States. FRONTIERS IN PAIN RESEARCH 2023; 4:1213750. [PMID: 37521943 PMCID: PMC10374263 DOI: 10.3389/fpain.2023.1213750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Socioeconomic disadvantages (SEDs) are associated with chronic pain (CP) and allostatic load (AL). Few prospective population-based studies have examined the relationship between life course SED, CP interference, and CP widespreadness, and there is no prospective population-based study on whether AL mediates the association between SED and CP. Objective In this study, we investigated whether the prospective effect of SED on CP at Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) 3 is consistent with the accumulation of risk model and social mobility model, using the National Survey of MIDUS (n = 593). To prepare for the mediation analysis, we tested (1) whether SED would be prospectively associated with AL in the MIDUS 2 biomarker project, (2) whether AL would be prospectively associated with CP, and (3) whether childhood, as a critical period, moderated the association between AL and CP. In addition, the mediating effect of AL on the association between SED and CP was examined. Method SED was measured using cumulative scores and disadvantage trajectories derived from latent class trajectory modeling (LCTM). After multiple imputations, analyses were conducted using multinomial logistic regression for CP and negative binomial regression for AL, respectively. Finally, mediation analyses and moderated mediation analyses were performed. Results LCTM identified three SED trajectories, namely, constant low, high to low, and medium to high. The results showed that proximal cumulative SED was associated with high-interference CP. Furthermore, compared with the group with constant low SED, the group with medium-to-high SED was significantly associated with high-interference pain and experienced pain in at least three different sites. Cumulative SED and deteriorating SED trajectories were associated with higher AL, consistent with previous studies. Furthermore, childhood SED moderated the effect of AL on CP widespreadness and unexpectedly demonstrated a protective effect, while other associations between AL and CP were not significant. Subsequent mediation analysis did not yield statistically significant evidence. Conclusions People who experienced more recent SED or increasing disadvantage throughout their lives were more likely to suffer from CP, and this association was not mediated by physiological system dysregulation caused by chronic stress. Therefore, measures to alleviate AL may not be effective in protecting socioeconomically disadvantaged populations from CP.
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Parallel latent trajectories of mental health and personal earnings among 16- to 20 year-old US labor force participants: a 20-year longitudinal study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 2022; 58:805-821. [PMID: 36566466 DOI: 10.1007/s00127-022-02398-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Determine the number of latent parallel trajectories of mental health and employment earnings over two decades among American youth entering the workforce and estimate the association between baseline sociodemographic and health factors on latent trajectory class membership. METHODS This study used data of 8173 participants from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 who were 13-17 years old in 1997. Surveys occurred annually until 2011 then biennially until 2017, when participants were 33-37 years old. The Mental Health Inventory-5 measured mental health at eight survey cycles between 2000 and 2017. Employment earnings were measured annually between 1998 and 2017. Latent parallel trajectories were estimated using latent growth modeling. Multinomial logistic regression explored the association between baseline factors and trajectory membership. RESULTS Four parallel latent classes were identified; all showed stable mental health and increasing earnings. Three percent of the sample showed a good mental health, steep increasing earnings trajectory (average 2017 earnings ~ $196,000); 23% followed a good mental health, medium increasing earnings trajectory (average 2017 earnings ~ $78,100); 50% followed a good mental health, low increasing earnings trajectory (average 2017 earnings ~ $39,500); and 24% followed a poor mental, lowest increasing earnings trajectory (average 2017 earnings ~ $32,000). Participants who were younger, women, Black or Hispanic, from lower socioeconomic households, and reported poorer health behaviors had higher odds of belonging to the poor mental health, low earnings class. CONCLUSION Findings highlight the parallel courses of mental health and labor market earnings, and the influence of gender, race/ethnicity, and adolescent circumstances on these processes.
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Frech A, Damaske S, Ohler A. The Life Course of Unemployment and Midlife Health. J Aging Health 2022; 34:1081-1091. [PMID: 35521702 PMCID: PMC9578554 DOI: 10.1177/08982643221091775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Objectives: We estimate associations between unemployment trajectories from ages 27-49 and physical and mental health at age 50. Methods: Data are from the U.S. National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1979 (N=6434). Group-based trajectory models are used to identify unemployment trajectories. Generalized linear models with a modified Bolck, Croon, and Hagenaars (BCH) correction are used to regress health on unemployment trajectory groups. Results: We identified "Consistently Low (70%)," "Decreasing Mid-Career (18%)," and "Persistently High (12%)" unemployment trajectories. Experiencing Decreasing Mid-Career or Persistently High trajectories was associated with worse physical and mental health at age 50 than Consistently Low trajectories. Experiencing a Persistently High trajectory was associated with worse physical and mental health than a Decreasing Mid-Career trajectory. Discussion: Timing and likelihood of unemployment are associated with midlife health. Mid-Career unemployment is associated with worse physical and mental health at age 50, but not to the same degree as Persistently High unemployment.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sarah Damaske
- The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
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Veenstra M, Aartsen M. Life-course income trajectories of men and women in Norway: implications for self-rated health in later life. Eur J Public Health 2022; 32:542-547. [PMID: 35708604 PMCID: PMC9341848 DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/ckac055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Socioeconomic inequalities in health are well-established, but studies addressing lagged effects of income or of fluctuations in income over the life course are relatively rare. The current study aims to (i) identify and describe life-course income trajectories for men and women who are currently in later life; and (ii) assess the association of income trajectories with self-rated health in older adults. METHODS The study sample consisted of 1625 men and 1634 women born between 1937 and 1955 who participated in the third wave of the Norwegian Life course, Ageing and Generation Study. Latent class growth analyses were used to estimate dominant income trajectories from ages 30 through 62 in men and women. Stepwise logistic regression analyses were specified to analyze the association of income trajectories with self-rated health in later life. RESULTS Four trajectories in women and three trajectories in men were estimated as dominant patterns of income over the life course. Differences in the level of income were considerable at age 30 and accumulated over time. Continued exposure to low income showed statistically significant higher odds for poor self-rated health in older men and women. This association remained significant after taking differences in educational attainment, working life, family formation and accumulated wealth into account. CONCLUSION The findings suggested remarkable rigidity in income groups that had formed by age 30. A significant share of men and women remain mired in relatively low-income status across the life course with negative implications for health in later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marijke Veenstra
- NOVA-Norwegian Social Research, OsloMet-Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway.,Health Services Research Unit, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway
| | - Marja Aartsen
- NOVA-Norwegian Social Research, OsloMet-Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway
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Akanni L, Lenhart O, Morton A. Income trajectories and self-rated health status in the UK. SSM Popul Health 2022; 17:101035. [PMID: 35146114 PMCID: PMC8818564 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2022.101035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 01/19/2022] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
In line with the wide recognition of the connection between socioeconomic status and health outcomes, attention in the recent literature is extending the static perspective to the dynamic implications of income on health. This study contributes to the growing literature on the income-health nexus by evaluating income dynamics on various self-rated health measures in the UK. We explore the impact of different indicators of income experiences on self-rated health and wellbeing outcomes using data from the 11 Waves of Understanding Society UK Household Longitudinal Study between 2009 and 2019. First, we estimate a fixed-effects ordered logit model for various health and wellbeing measures, allowing us to control for unobserved time-invariant heterogeneity. Second, we evaluate the effects of income trajectories by linking longitudinal household income to cross-sectional health outcomes. Our results confirm the general evidence of positive impacts of increasing family income on health. Besides, we find that stability in income position is strongly associated with improved health and wellbeing. On the other hand, income volatility increases the odds of reporting poor health outcomes, particularly for those in low-income households. Also, more years spent in a lower-income quartile reduces the odds of reporting improved self-rated health. Finally, the significant difference in the estimated effects of income before and after 2016 highlights the significant shifts in the effects of income trajectories on self-reported health and wellbeing following the National Living Wage policy implementation. The paper evaluates the impact of income trajectories on health and wellbeing outcomes. Income stability is associated with increased likelihood of improved self-reported health. Income volatility and low-income spells predicts poor health and wellbeing.
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Frech A, Houle J, Tumin D. Trajectories of unsecured debt and health at midlife. SSM Popul Health 2021; 15:100846. [PMID: 34189245 PMCID: PMC8219895 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2021.100846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2021] [Revised: 06/09/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Unsecured debt - debt not tied to an asset - is a financial stressor that undermines health, but prior research has not investigated relationships between group-based trajectories of unsecured debt and pain and disability at midlife. METHODS US respondents of the National Longitudinal Study of Youth-1979 cohort reported unsecured debt and income between ages 28-40. We used these measures to identify group-based trajectories of unsecured debt and unsecured debt-to-income ratio. We then used trajectory membership to predict three pain and disability-related health outcomes at age 50, adjusting for lagged health and other covariates. RESULTS Group-based trajectory models divided the sample of 7850 respondents into 6 unsecured debt trajectories and 5 unsecured debt-to-income trajectories. In fully adjusted unsecured debt models, compared to people with constant low debt, those who paid down debt over time, carried constant debt, experienced debt cycling, or accumulated debt later in life were more likely to report pain interference with activities or joint pain or stiffness at age 50 (pain interference ORs ranging from 1.33 to 1.76; joint pain or stiffness ORs ranging from 1.27 to 1.45). In fully adjusted unsecured debt-to-income models, compared to those with constant low debt, those with constant high debt or accumulating debt later in life were more likely to report pain interference or joint pain or stiffness (pain interference ORs ranging from 1.30 to 1.91; joint pain or stiffness ORs ranging from 1.19 to 1.33). CONCLUSION The amount, timing, and duration of unsecured debt accumulation and repayment have important health implications and may exacerbate midlife health inequalities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrianne Frech
- Department of Health Sciences, University of Missouri, 501 S. Providence Rd, Columbia, MO, USA
| | - Jason Houle
- Department of Sociology, Dartmouth College, 301F Blunt Hall, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Dmitry Tumin
- Department of Pediatrics, Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, 600 Moye Blvd, Greenville, NC, USA
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Shi J, Tarkiainen L, Martikainen P, van Raalte A. The impact of income definitions on mortality inequalities. SSM Popul Health 2021; 15:100915. [PMID: 34527804 PMCID: PMC8433258 DOI: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2021.100915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Income is a strong predictor of adult mortality. Measuring income is not as simple as it may sound. It can be conceptualized at the individual or the household level, with the former better reflecting an individual's earning ability, and the latter better capturing living standards. Furthermore, respondents are often grouped into income categories based on their positions in the income distribution, and this operationalization can be done on the basis of age-specific or total population income distributions. In this study, we look at how four combinations of different conceptualizations (individual vs. household) and operationalizations (age-specific vs. total population) of income can affect mortality inequality estimates. Using Finnish registry data, we constructed period life tables for ages 25+ from 1996 to 2017 by gender and for four income definitions. The results indicated that the slope index of inequality for life expectancy varied by 1.1-5.7 years between income definitions, with larger differences observed for women than for men. The overall age patterns of relative index of inequality for mortality rates yielded by the four definitions were similar, but the levels differed. The period trends across income definitions were consistent for men, but not for women. We conclude that researchers should pay particular attention to the choice of the income definitions when analyzing the association between income and mortality, and when comparing the magnitude of inequality across studies and over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaxin Shi
- Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
- Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science, Department of Sociology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Lasse Tarkiainen
- Population Research Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Pekka Martikainen
- Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
- Population Research Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
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He L, Wang K, Zhang Z, Wang J, Li T, Wang Y, Yang L, Wu Y, Zhang S, Zhang S, Yang H. Depression Levels of State Functionaries: Empirical Evidence From China. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:754182. [PMID: 34966301 PMCID: PMC8710587 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.754182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Accepted: 11/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This study aimed to explore the depression levels of those serving as state functionaries in China. We used data from the 2016 China Labor-force Dynamics Survey and the ordinary least squares model for the regression analysis. The results found: i) The degree of depression of state functionaries was found to be lower than that of other workers; that is, the overall depression index of state functionaries was 1.010 points lower, and the result was significant at the degree of 1%; ii) state functionaries had a lower degree of depression than workers in all other occupation groups; iii) older state functionaries had lower depression than their younger counterparts; iv) the degree of depression of state functionaries in the provinces involved in China's three major urban agglomerations was higher than that of those in other provinces; and v) the degree of depression of female state functionaries was lower than that their male peers. Thus, there is an association between serving as a state functionary in China and depression. State functionaries have lower levels of depression than other working groups. These levels were generally lower but varied according to age, sex, and province.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li He
- School of Philosophy, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Kun Wang
- School of Philosophy, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Zixian Zhang
- School of Philosophy, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Jiangyin Wang
- School of Philosophy, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Tianyang Li
- School of Philosophy, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuting Wang
- School of Philosophy, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Lixingzi Yang
- School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuanyang Wu
- School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Shuo Zhang
- School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Siqing Zhang
- School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
| | - Hualei Yang
- School of Public Administration, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China
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Weisshaar K, Cabello-Hutt T. Labor Force Participation Over the Life Course: The Long-Term Effects of Employment Trajectories on Wages and the Gendered Payoff to Employment. Demography 2020; 57:33-60. [PMID: 31997232 DOI: 10.1007/s13524-019-00845-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
In this article, we consider how individuals' long-term employment trajectories relate to wage inequality and the gender wage gap in the United States. Using more than 30 years of data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 sample, we identify six employment trajectories for individuals from ages 22 to 50. We find that women across racial/ethnic groups and Black men are more likely than White and Hispanic men to have nonsteady employment trajectories and lower levels of employment throughout their lives, and individuals who have experienced poverty also have heightened risks of intermittent employment. We then assess how trajectories are associated with wages later in careers, at ages 45-50. We find significant variation in wages across work trajectories, with steady high employment leading to the highest wages. This wage variation is primarily explained by work characteristics rather than family characteristics. Finally, we examine gender variation in within-trajectory wages. We find that the gender wage gap is largest in the steady high employment trajectory and is reduced among trajectories with longer durations of nonemployment. Thus, although women are relatively more concentrated in nonsteady trajectories than are men, men who do follow nonsteady wage trajectories incur smaller wage premiums than men in steady high employment pathways, on average. These findings demonstrate that long-term employment paths are important predictors of economic and gender wage inequality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine Weisshaar
- Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 155 Hamilton Hall, CB #3210, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA.
| | - Tania Cabello-Hutt
- Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 155 Hamilton Hall, CB #3210, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
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