Viola Angelini

Do Danes and Italians Rate Life Satisfaction in the Same Way? Using Vignettes to Correct for Individual-Specific Scale Biases†

Self-reported life satisfaction is highly heterogeneous across similar countries. We show that this phenomenon can by largely explained by the fact that individuals adopt different scales and benchmarks in evaluating themselves. Using a cross sectional dataset on individuals aged 50 and over in ten European countries, we compare estimates from an Ordered Probit in which life satisfaction scales are invariant across respondents with those from a Hopit model in which vignettes are used to correct for individual-specific scale biases. We find that variations in response scales explain a large part of the differences found in raw data. Moreover, the cross countries ranking in life satisfaction dramatically depends on scale biases.

Age, Health and Life Satisfaction Among Older Europeans

In this paper we investigate how age affects the self-reported level of life satisfaction among the elderly in Europe. By using a vignette approach, we find evidence that age influences life satisfaction through two counterbalancing channels. On the one hand, controlling for the effects of all other variables, the own perceived level of life satisfaction increases with age. On the other hand, given the same true level of life satisfaction, older respondents are more likely to rank themselves as “dissatisfied” with their life than younger individuals. Detrimental health conditions and physical limitations play a crucial role in explaining scale biases in the reporting style of older individuals.

Home-ownership in Europe: How did it happen?

We use data from the third wave of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARELIFE)(1) to document the different ways individuals first became home-owners across countries and over cohorts over the second half of the 20th century. Focusing on first-time home owners we find that younger cohorts became home-owners earlier and were more likely to do it through credit, less likely to inherit their home directly. Having higher human capital, being employed, married, having children and living in an urban area, all make it more likely to purchase a home with a mortgage. The persistence of family help in accessing home-ownership in many countries demonstrates the interrelation between family, market and the state in most of continental Europe.

Born at the right time? Childhood health and the business cycle

We analyze the relationship between the state of the business cycle at birth and childhood health. We use a retrospective survey on self-reported childhood health for ten Western European countries and combine it with historically and internationally comparable data on the Gross Domestic Product. We validate the self-reported data by comparing them to realized illness spells. We find a positive relationship between being born in a recession and childhood health. This relationship is not driven by selection effects due to heightened infant mortality during recessions. Placebo regressions indicate that the observed effect is not spurious.

Cross-Country Differentials in Work Disability Reporting Among Older Europeans

Descriptive evidence shows that there is large cross-country variation in self-reported work disability rates of the elderly in Europe. In this paper we analyse whether these differences are genuine or they just reflect heterogeneity in reporting styles. To shed light on the determinants of work-disability differentials across countries, we combine a wide set of individuals’ socioeconomic and health status characteristics with macro-economic indicators describing the institutional background of the country of residence.

Nest Leaving in Europe

The nest leaving period and the age at which individuals establish their own independent household are of primary policy concern since they are critically linked to many economic and social outcomes. The choices made by young adults are numerous: further education, marriage, parenthood, first job. All are interrelated and can be linked to another choice, that of a first independent home. Youth labour supply and educational choices will determine the length of the career, pension and life-time consumption. Billari and Tabellini (2008) show that Italians who leave the parental home earlier in life earn a higher income in their mid 30s. This might be due either to the fact that they tend to have longer working experience or to a negative impact of prolonged co-residence on ambitions and motivations for children who leave late (Alessie et al. 2006). The demographic transition and population evolution are largely linked to the timing of first parenthood. Health in later life and life expectancy are linked to the education level.

Does Downsizing of Housing Equity Alleviate Financial Distress in Old Age

Reasons for residential moves vary across the life-course. While deteriorating health and increasing needs for support by children have been suggested to be the main motivations for moves in later life, one as yet under-investigated reason might be the wish to reduce home equity, thus alleviating financial distress in old age.

Can Temptation Explain Housing Choices in Later Life

We use individual life-history data on twelve European countries to investigate the role of temptation in explaining the decision to become home-owners relatively late in life. The model we consider takes into account the standard motives for saving and investing in illiquid assets such as housing and individual retirement accounts, but recognizes that illiquid assets may be used by individuals who find it hard to procrastinate current consumption to control the temptation linked to having plenty of cash on hand. The evidence we produce is consistent with the notion that tempted individuals first resort to illiquid financial assets to control temptation, but as retirement age approaches they are more likely to use home-ownership as a commitment device.

Homeownership in Old Age at the Crossroad Between Personal and National Histories

Compared to other forms of savings for old age, homeownership offers some advantages. Purchasing a home is similar to purchasing an annuity that would insure housing consumption. Moreover, the home may be seen as a secure asset in case of need and perceived as a substitute for the purchase of long term care insurance. It is also a family asset that may be transmitted to the next generation. These advantages are weighted against the drawbacks of over consumption in old age (for those who are house rich and cash poor), low portfolio diversification (the price risk may be important if all assets are in the home), and illiquidity (drawing equity in case of need is not easy).

Associations between Childhood Parental Mental Health Difficulties and Depressive Symptoms in Late Adulthood: The Influence of Life-Course Socioeconomic, Health and Lifestyle Factors

Background Depression among older adults (i.e., the 50+) is a major health concern. The objective of this study is to investigate whether growing up with a parent suffering from mental health problems is associated with depressive symptoms in late-adulthood and how this association is influenced by life-course socio-economic, health and lifestyle factors in childhood and late adulthood. Methods We used life-history data from the SHARE survey, consisting of 21,127 participants living in 13 European countries. Symptoms of depression were assessed using the EURO-D scale. Parental mental health was assessed by asking respondents to report whether any of their parents had mental health problems during the respondents’ childhood. Logistic regression models were used to assess the association between parental mental health status and depression. Variables on childhood and late-life socio-economic, health and lifestyle factors were sequentially added to the model to assess the extent to which this association is influenced by life-course circumstances. Results Individuals who were exposed during childhood to a parent with mental health problems suffered from depressive symptoms more often in late adulthood than those who were not (OR 1.76, 95% CI: 1.43–2.17). Adjustment for life-course socio-economic, health and lifestyle factors in childhood and late adulthood diminished this association to an OR of 1.54 (95% CI: 1.24–1.90) and OR of 1.45 (95% CI: 1.16–1.82), respectively. Conclusion Our results indicate a substantial association between parental mental health problems in childhood and depression in late adulthood and that this association is partly explained by childhood as well as late adulthood socio-economic, health and lifestyle factors.