Do People Become Healthier after Being Promoted?

Christopher J. Boyce () and Andrew Oswald
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Christopher J. Boyce: University of Manchester

No 3894, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper uses longitudinal data to explore whether greater job status makes a person healthier. Taking the evidence as a whole, promotees do not exhibit a health improvement after promotion. Instead the data suggest that workers with good health are more likely to be promoted. In the private sector, we find that job promotion significantly worsens people's psychological strain (on a GHQ score). For the public sector, there are some tentative signs of the reverse. We discuss caveats to our conclusions, suggest caution in their interpretation, and argue that further longitudinal studies are needed.

Keywords: job satisfaction; locus of control; GHQ; Whitehall studies; health; mortality; status (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 40 pages
Date: 2008-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hap, nep-hea, nep-lab and nep-ltv
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Published - published in: Health Economics, 2012, 21, 580-596

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Related works:
Journal Article: Do people become healthier after being promoted? (2012)
Working Paper: Do people become healthier after being promoted? (2011)
Working Paper: Do people become healthier after being promoted? (2011)
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