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The self-reinforcing dynamics of economic insecurity and obesity

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  • Nicholas Rohde
  • KK Tang
  • Lars Osberg

Abstract

This article models the dynamic effects of economic insecurity on body weight. Using Australian panel data, we infer an individual’s level of economic insecurity as a function of exposure to various financial risks and employ regression equations to explore its effect upon current period body mass index (BMI) scores. Estimates reveal that a sustained standard deviation increase in economic insecurity raises an individual’s BMI at a rate of approximately 0.35 units per year. Quantile regressions are then used to estimate the sensitivity of body weight to insecurity at different percentiles of the distribution and we find that persons who are overweight and obese are much more seriously affected. This implies that shocks that make individuals more financially vulnerable can generate harmful self-sustaining cycles of risk and weight gain. We also model the dynamics of insecurity and show that it is a persistent phenomenon for persons with high levels of exposure and lower incomes. This finding indicates that persons of lower socio-economic status are more likely to encounter vicious cycles of increasing insecurity and obesity, which partially explains why weight-related health problems are unusually highly concentrated amongst these individuals.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicholas Rohde & KK Tang & Lars Osberg, 2017. "The self-reinforcing dynamics of economic insecurity and obesity," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(17), pages 1668-1678, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:applec:v:49:y:2017:i:17:p:1668-1678
    DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2016.1223826
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    Cited by:

    1. Marina Romaguera de la Cruz, 2017. "Economic insecurity in Spain: A multidimensional analysis," Working Papers 448, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    2. Kong, Nancy & Phipps, Shelley & Watson, Barry, 2021. "Parental economic insecurity and child health," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 43(C).
    3. Rohde, Nicholas & Tang, Kam Ki & Osberg, Lars & Rao, D.S. Prasada, 2017. "Is it vulnerability or economic insecurity that matters for health?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 307-319.
    4. Nancy Kong & Lars Osberg & Weina Zhou, 2018. "The Shattered “Iron Rice Bowl”— Intergenerational Effects of Economic Insecurity During Chinese State-Owned Enterprise Reform," Discussion Papers Series 595, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia.
    5. Dmitry Petrov & Marina Romaguera-de-la-Cruz, 2023. "Measuring economic insecurity with a joint income-wealth approach," Working Papers 637, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    6. Watson, Barry & Daley, Angela & Rohde, Nicholas & Osberg, Lars, 2020. "Blown off-course? Weight gain among the economically insecure during the great recession," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    7. Cantó, Olga & García-Pérez, Carmelo & Romaguera-de-la-Cruz, Marina, 2020. "The dimension, nature and distribution of economic insecurity in European countries: A multidimensional approach," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 44(3).
    8. Lars Osberg, 2018. "Full Employment in Canada in the early 21st Century," Working Papers daleconwp2018-02, Dalhousie University, Department of Economics.
    9. Costanzo Ranci & Jason Beckfield & Laura Bernardi & Andrea Parma, 2021. "New Measures of Economic Insecurity Reveal its Expansion Into EU Middle Classes and Welfare States," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 158(2), pages 539-562, December.
    10. Kong, Nancy & Osberg, Lars & Zhou, Weina, 2019. "The shattered “Iron Rice Bowl”: Intergenerational effects of Chinese State-Owned Enterprise reform," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    11. Olga Cantó & Carmelo García-Pérez & Marina Romaguera de la Cruz, 2021. "Multidimensional Measures of Economic Insecurity in Spain: The Role of Aggregation and Weighting Methods," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 238(3), pages 29-60, September.

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    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I30 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General

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