Debt and depression

Sarah Bridges and Richard Disney

Journal of Health Economics, 2010, vol. 29, issue 3, 388-403

Abstract: We examine the effect of household financial indebtedness on psychological well-being using a large household survey of families with children in Britain. Existing studies that find a link between debt and depression tend to utilise small and highly selective samples of people and only self-reported measures of financial stress, responses to which are likely to correlate with subjective measures of health. From additional household data, we can construct a variety of 'objective' quantitative measures of financial stress in order to validate self-reported measures. We show that, although there is a positive association between subjective measures of financial well-being and psychological well-being, individuals differ in their psychological response to objective household financial situations. We also examine how the potential simultaneity of financial and psychological health might be handled.

Keywords: Financial; indebtedness; Psychological; well-being; Self-reported; measures (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (103)

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Working Paper: Debt and depression (2006)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jhecon:v:29:y:2010:i:3:p:388-403

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