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Income inequality, area-level poverty, perceived aversion to inequality, and self-rated health in Japan

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  • Oshio, Takashi
  • Kobayashi, Miki

Abstract

In this study we conduct a multilevel analysis to investigate the association between regional income inequality and self-rated health in Japan, based on two nationwide surveys. We confirm that there is a significant association between area-level income inequality and individual-level health assessment. We also find that health assessment tends to be more sensitive to income inequality among lower income individuals, and to degree of area-level poverty, than income inequality for the society as a whole. In addition, we examine how individuals are averse to inequality, based on the observed association between inequality and self-rated health.

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  • Oshio, Takashi & Kobayashi, Miki, 2009. "Income inequality, area-level poverty, perceived aversion to inequality, and self-rated health in Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 69(3), pages 317-326, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:69:y:2009:i:3:p:317-326
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    2. Dean, Wesley R. & Sharkey, Joseph R., 2011. "Food insecurity, social capital and perceived personal disparity in a predominantly rural region of Texas: An individual-level analysis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 72(9), pages 1454-1462, May.
    3. Stephen Tay, 2015. "Rethinking Income Inequality in Japan and China (1995–2007)," China Report, , vol. 51(3), pages 230-257, August.
    4. Inaba, Yoji & Wada, Yuri & Ichida, Yukinobu & Nishikawa, Masashi, 2015. "Which part of community social capital is related to life satisfaction and self-rated health? A multilevel analysis based on a nationwide mail survey in Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 169-182.
    5. Karlsdotter, Kristina & Martín Martín, José J. & López del Amo González, M. Puerto, 2012. "Multilevel analysis of income, income inequalities and health in Spain," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 74(7), pages 1099-1106.
    6. Akihiko Noda & Shunsuke Sugiyama, 2010. "Measuring the Intertemporal Elasticity of Substitution for Consumption: Some Evidence from Japan," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 30(1), pages 524-533.
    7. Chunping Han, 2014. "Health Implications of Socioeconomic Characteristics, Subjective Social Status, and Perceptions of Inequality: An Empirical Study of China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 119(2), pages 495-514, November.
    8. Oshio, Takashi & 小塩, 隆士 & オシオ, タカシ & Urakawa, Kunio, 2011. "Neighborhood Perceptions, Self-rated Health, and Personality Traits: Evidence from Japan," CIS Discussion paper series 531, Center for Intergenerational Studies, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    9. Oshio, Takashi & Kobayashi, Miki, 2010. "Income inequality, perceived happiness, and self-rated health: Evidence from nationwide surveys in Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 70(9), pages 1358-1366, May.
    10. Cut Risya Varlitya & Raja Masbar & Abd. Jamal & Muhammad Nasir, 2023. "Do Regional Macroeconomics Variables Influence the Income Inequality in Indonesia?," Economic Studies journal, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences - Economic Research Institute, issue 1, pages 180-199.
    11. Kenneth David Strang, 2012. "Man versus math: Behaviorist exploration of post-crisis non-banking asset management," Journal of Asset Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 13(5), pages 348-367, October.
    12. Takashi Oshio & Miki Kobayashi, 2011. "Area-Level Income Inequality and Individual Happiness: Evidence from Japan," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 12(4), pages 633-649, August.
    13. Sakurai, Keiko & Kawakami, Norito & Yamaoka, Kazue & Ishikawa, Hirono & Hashimoto, Hideki, 2010. "The impact of subjective and objective social status on psychological distress among men and women in Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 70(11), pages 1832-1839, June.
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