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The Association of Post-Materialism with Health Care Use. Findings of a General Population Survey in Germany

Author

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  • André Hajek

    (Department of Health Economics and Health Services Research, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany)

  • Hans-Helmut König

    (Department of Health Economics and Health Services Research, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany)

Abstract

(1) The aim of this study was to identify the association between post-materialism and health care use (in terms of the frequency of doctor visits and the reason for doctor visits). (2) Data were taken from the German General Social Survey (a representative sample of individuals aged 18 years and over, n = 3338). The Inglehart’s post-materialist index was used to quantify post-materialism. The doctor visits (self-reported) in the past three months served as an outcome measure. The reasons for seeing a doctor served as an additional outcome measure (acute illness; chronic illness; feeling unwell; requesting advice; visit to the doctor’s office without consulting the doctor (e.g., need to get a prescription); preventive medical check-up/vaccination). (3) After adjusting for several covariates, negative binomial regressions revealed that compared with materialism, post-materialism was associated with decreased doctor visits (total sample; women). Moreover, the likelihood of visiting the doctor for reasons of chronic illnesses was lower in post-materialistic women, whereas the likelihood of visiting the doctor for reasons of preventive medical check-up/vaccination was higher in post-materialistic women. (4) Study findings identify an unexplored link between post-materialism and doctor visits in women. One may conclude that in the long-term, the increased likelihood of preventive medical check-ups in post-materialistic women will be beneficial in decreasing the need for doctor visits for reasons of chronic illnesses. However, future research is required to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.

Suggested Citation

  • André Hajek & Hans-Helmut König, 2020. "The Association of Post-Materialism with Health Care Use. Findings of a General Population Survey in Germany," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-11, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:23:p:8869-:d:453097
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. André Hajek & Jens-Oliver Bock & Hans-Helmut König, 2017. "The role of personality in health care use: Results of a population-based longitudinal study in Germany," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(7), pages 1-15, July.
    2. Cameron,A. Colin & Trivedi,Pravin K., 2013. "Regression Analysis of Count Data," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107014169, January.
    3. Inglehart, Ronald & Abramson, Paul R., 1999. "Measuring Postmaterialism," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 93(3), pages 665-677, September.
    4. Inglehart, Ronald, 1971. "The Silent Revolution in Europe: Intergenerational Change in Post-Industrial Societies," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 65(4), pages 991-1017, December.
    5. Alan D. Lopez & Colin D. Mathers & Majid Ezzati & Dean T. Jamison & Christopher J. L. Murray, 2006. "Global Burden of Disease and Risk Factors," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7039.
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    Cited by:

    1. Pietro Ferrara & Luciana Albano, 2022. "Advances in Population-Based Healthcare Research: From Measures to Evidence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-4, October.

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