Does who you live with matter for your health? The influence of partners’ socioeconomic characteristics on self-rated health in Norway

Does who you live with matter for your health? The influence of partners’ socioeconomic characteristics on self-rated health in Norway

Aims: Studies of the association between self-rated health and persons’ income and education have almost invariably shown that people with higher education and incomes report better health. Less is known of the influence of household members’ socioeconomic characteristics on individuals’ health. Thi...

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Published in:Scandinavian journal of public health Vol. 52; no. 7; pp. 819 - 828
Main Authors: Hofoss, Dag, Grøtvedt, Liv, Grøholt, Else K., Ramm, Jorun, Lunde, Elin S., Syse, Astri
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01-11-2024
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Cross-Sectional Studies
Diagnostic Self Evaluation
Female
Health Status
Humans
Income - statistics & numerical data
Male
Middle Aged
Norway
Socioeconomic Factors
Spouses - psychology
Spouses - statistics & numerical data
Young Adult
Norway
health status
income
partner
Education
Norway
sex
socioeconomic
family
self-assessed
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Summary:Aims: Studies of the association between self-rated health and persons’ income and education have almost invariably shown that people with higher education and incomes report better health. Less is known of the influence of household members’ socioeconomic characteristics on individuals’ health. This study thus aimed to assess the extent to which the socioeconomic characteristics of partners may contribute to explaining the variation in the respondents’ self-rated health (SRH). Methods: Using an observational design, we analysed cross-sectional Norwegian survey data on SRH (2015 and 2019), linked to register data on education and income for respondents (N = 7082) and their opposite-sex coresident spouse or partner. We employed logistic regression models to assess the associations between respondents’ SRH and the relative income and education of their partner. Average marginal effects were calculated to enable cross-model comparisons. Results: Net of individual characteristics, having a higher-educated partner was positively associated with SRH for both male (OR = 1.56) and female (OR = 1.36) respondents. Having a partner with an above median income (by age and sex) was positively associated with SRH for female (OR = 1.29) respondents only. For education, the positive SRH associations were roughly similar for respondents and partners. For income, the associations were more pronounced for respondents than partners. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that health is affected by the resources (or lack thereof) in one’s immediate networks. To reduce social inequalities in health, health personnel might customise interactions to account for household resources. Such knowledge could also be used in health-promoting activities to enhance participation and health competency.
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ISSN:1403-4948
1651-1905
1651-1905
DOI:10.1177/14034948231197453