Education, Health and Health-Related Behaviors: Evidence from Higher Education Expansion

Massimiliano Bratti, Elena Cottini () and Paolo Ghinetti ()
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Elena Cottini: Catholic University Milan

No 15035, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This study throws light on the potential non-linear effects of education on individual health and health-related behaviors, finding a strong role for higher education. Using an instrumental variables (IVs) strategy, which leverages changes in within-province between-municipality college proximity across birth cohorts, we demonstrate that higher education affects individual health-related behavior. By contrast, IVs estimates based on a compulsory schooling age reform show mostly non-significant effects. Our results point to a complex link between education and health. On the one hand, higher education channels individuals into some healthy behaviors and better health outcomes namely healthy eating, more physical activity and a lower risk of obesity. On the other hand, it also appears to increase the prevalence of certain unhealthy behaviors, such as greater smoking and drinking prevalence and higher cigarettes consumption. Albeit effects are generally similar across genders, except in few cases (e.g. smoking behavior), our analysis highlights heterogeneous effects by age and helps explain potential differences in results reported in past quasi-experimental studies in which the cohorts affected by the educational reforms used for identification are observed at given ages and not over an individual's entire life-cycle.

Keywords: education; health; higher education expansion; health-related behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I12 I24 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 45 pages
Date: 2022-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-eur and nep-hea
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Working Paper: Education, health and health-related behaviors: Evidence from higher education expansion (2022)
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