ArticleSocial psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology2016
Social protection spending and inequalities in depressive symptoms across Europe.
Article in Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Preventing depression in high-income countries-A systematic review of studies evaluating change in social determinants.PloS one · 2025Pooled it
- How do macro-level structural determinants affect inequalities in mental health? - a systematic review of the literature.International journal for equity in health · 2018Pooled it
- Investments in Childhood Community Resources and Subsequent Adult Health Outcomes.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- The Associations Between Income and Depression: A Cross-National Analysis.Depression and anxiety · 2026Article
- Prevalence and correlates of probable anxiety and depression among young people: A subnational cross-sectional study in Ghana.Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2026Article
- The Effect of Welfare State Policy Spending on the Equalization of Socioeconomic Status Disparities in Mental Health.Journal of health and social behavior · 2023Article
- Levelling up: Global examples of reducing health inequalities.Scandinavian journal of public health · 2022Article
- Local Inequalities in Health Behaviours: Longitudinal Findings from the Stockton-On-Tees Cohort Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Welfare Chauvinism, Populist Radical Right Parties and Health Inequalities Comment on "A Scoping Review of Populist Radical Right Parties' Influence on Welfare Policy and its Implications for Population Health in Europe".International journal of health policy and management · 2021Article
- COVID-19 mental health impact and responses in low-income and middle-income countries: reimagining global mental health.The lancet. Psychiatry · 2021Review
- Regional employment and individual worklessness during the Great Recession and the health of the working-age population: Cross-national analysis of 16 European countries.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2020Article
- Inequalities in mental health and well-being in a time of austerity: Follow-up findings from the Stockton-on-Tees cohort study.SSM - population health · 2018Article
- Health inequalities between employed and unemployed in northern Sweden: a decomposition analysis of social determinants for mental health.International journal for equity in health · 2018Article
- "How the other half live": Lay perspectives on health inequalities in an age of austerity.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2017Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposeCommon mental disorders are an increasing global public health concern. The least advantaged in society experience a greater burden of mental illness, but inequalities in mental health vary by social, political, and economic contexts. This study investigates whether spending on different types of social protection alters the extent of social inequality in depressive symptoms.
methodsData were obtained from the 2006 and 2012 cross-sectional waves of the European Social Survey, which included 48,397 individuals from 18 European countries. Depressive symptoms were measured using the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D 8). Statistical interactions between country-level social protection spending and individuals' education level, employment and family status were explored using multilevel regression models.
resultsHigher spending on active labour market programmes was related to narrower inequality in depressive symptoms by education level. Compared to men with high education, the marginal effect of having low education was 1.67 (95 % CI, 1.46-1.87) among men in countries with lower spending and 0.85 (95 % CI, 0.66-1.03) in higher spending countries. Single parents exhibited fewer depressive symptoms, as spending on family policies increased. Little evidence was found for an overall association between spending on unemployment benefits and employment-related inequalities in depressive symptoms, but in 2012, unemployment spending appeared beneficial to mental health among the unemployed.
conclusionsGreater investment in social protection may act to reduce inequalities in depressive symptoms. Reductions in spending levels or increased conditionality may adversely affect the mental health of disadvantaged social groups.
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