Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-l7hp2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T17:06:32.789Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Self-rated health and later receipt of work-related benefits: evidence from the 1970 British Cohort Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 November 2012

M. Henderson ,
S. Stansfeld  and
M. Hotopf
M. Henderson*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's CollegeLondon, UK
S. Stansfeld
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, UK
M. Hotopf
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's CollegeLondon, UK
*
*Address for correspondence: Dr M. Henderson, Senior Lecturer in Epidemiological and Occupational Psychiatry, King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, Department of Psychological Medicine, Weston Education Centre, Cutcombe Road, London SE5 9RJ, UK. (Email: [email protected])
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background

Long-term sickness absence (LTSA) is most commonly due to common mental disorders and symptom-based conditions. Relatively little research has examined individual, as opposed to occupational, risk factors for LTSA. Individual appraisal of the workplace has been considered in several studies but self-rated health has more often been examined as a consequence of, rather than as a risk factor for, sickness absence. We aimed to study the association between self-rated health and later LTSA.

Method

We used data from the 1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70). LTSA was defined as being in receipt of Incapacity Benefit (IB)/Severe Disablement Allowance (SDA) at age 34. The mother rated the participant's overall health at age 16; the participants self-rated at age 30. Reports of psychological and somatic symptoms were available at age 16; data on major health conditions were available at age 30.

Results

Analyses were restricted to those working, studying or caring for children at age 30 (n = 14 105). One hundred and fifty-six (1.1%) were receiving IB or SDA by age 34. After adjustment for social class at birth, educational attainment, health conditions at age 30 and psychological and somatic symptoms at age 16, those who reported their health as poor had more than five times the odds of being long-term sick at age 34.

Conclusions

The overall appraisal of an individual's health as poor, independent of any diagnosis, is a significant vulnerability factor for LTSA.

Keywords

BCS70cohort studyincapacity benefitself-rated healthsick leave
Type
Original Articles
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 43 , Issue 8 , August 2013 , pp. 1755 - 1762
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Black, C (2008). Working for a Healthier Tomorrow. The Stationery Office: London.Google Scholar
Cattrell, A, Harris, EC, Palmer, KT, Kim, M, Aylward, M, Coggon, D (2011). Regional trends in awards of incapacity benefit by cause. Occupational Medicine (London) 61, 148–151.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
CBI (2010). On the Path to Recovery: Absence and Workplace Health Survey 2010. Confederation of British Industry: London.Google Scholar
Culpin, M, Smith, M (1930). The Nervous Temperament. Issue 61 of Report, Industrial Health Research Board. H.M. Stationery Office: London.Google Scholar
Doll, R, Jones, F (1951). Occupational Factors in the Aetiology of Gastric and Duodenal Ulcers and an Estimate of their Incidence in the General Population. H.M. Stationery Office: London.Google Scholar
DWP (2004). Pathways to Work: Helping People into Employment. Department for Work and Pensions: London.Google Scholar
DWP (2010). The Coalition: Our Programme for Government – Jobs and Welfare. Department for Work and Pensions: London.Google Scholar
DWP (2011). DWP Statistical Summary June 2011. Department for Work and Pensions: London.Google Scholar
Elliott, J, Shepherd, P (2006). Cohort profile: 1970 British Birth Cohort (BCS70). International Journal of Epidemiology 35, 836–843.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Eriksson, HG, von Celsing, AS, Wahlstrom, R, Janson, L, Zander, V, Wallman, T (2008). Sickness absence and self-reported health a population-based study of 43,600 individuals in central Sweden. BMC Public Health 8, 426.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferri, J, Bynner, J, Wadsworth, M (eds) (2003). Changing Britain, Changing Lives: Three Generations at the Turn of the Century. Institute of Education: London.Google Scholar
Frost, D, Black, C (2011). Health at Work – an Independent Review of Sickness Absence. Department for Work and Pensions: London.Google Scholar
Gimeno, D, Benavides, FG, Benach, J, Amick, BC 3rd (2004). Distribution of sickness absence in the European Union countries. Occupational and Environmental Medicine 61, 867–869.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Goldberg, D, Williams, P (1988). A User's Guide to the General Health Questionnaire. Nfer-Nelson: Windsor.Google Scholar
Gravseth, HM, Bjerkedal, T, Irgens, LM, Aalen, OO, Selmer, R, Kristensen, P (2007). Life course determinants for early disability pension: a follow-up of Norwegian men and women born 1967–1976. European Journal of Epidemiology 22, 533–543.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Harkonmaki, K, Korkeila, K, Vahtera, J, Kivimaki, M, Suominen, S, Sillanmaki, L, Koskenvuo, M (2007). Childhood adversities as a predictor of disability retirement. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 61, 479–484.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Henderson, M, Clark, C, Stansfeld, S, Hotopf, M (2012 a). A lifecourse approach to long-term sickness absence – a cohort study. PLoS ONE 7, e36645.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Henderson, M, Glozier, N, Holland Elliott, K (2005). Long term sickness absence. British Medical Journal 330, 802–803.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Henderson, M, Harvey, S, Overland, S, Mykletun, A, Hotopf, M (2011). Work and common psychiatric disorders. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 104, 198–207.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Henderson, M, Hotopf, M, Leon, D (2009). Childhood temperament and long term sickness absence in adult life. British Journal of Psychiatry 194, 220–223.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Henderson, M, Richards, M, Stansfeld, S, Hotopf, M (2012 b). The association between childhood cognitive ability and adult long-term sickness absence in three British birth cohorts: a cohort study. BMJ Open 2, e000777.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jobcentre Plus (2007). A Guide for Disabled People, Those with Health Conditions, and Carers. Jobcentre Plus: London.Google Scholar
Karasek, R, Theorell, T (1990). Healthy Work. Stress, Productivity, and the Reconstruction of the Working Life. Basic Books: New York.Google Scholar
Knudsen, AK, Hotopf, M, Skogen, JC, Overland, S, Mykletun, A (2010). The health status of nonparticipants in a population-based health study: the Hordaland Health Study. American Journal of Epidemiology 172, 1306–1314.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lancee, B, Ter Hoeven, CL (2010). Self-rated health and sickness-related absence: the modifying role of civic participation. Social Science and Medicine 70, 570–574.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Marmot, M, Feeney, A, Shipley, M, North, F, Syme, SL (1995). Sickness absence as a measure of health status and functioning: from the UK Whitehall II study. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 49, 124–130.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Norwegian Department of Finance (2009). ‘White paper’ published by the Norwegian Department of Finance, Oslo.Google Scholar
ONS (2011). Labour Market Statistics – June 2011. Office for National Statistics: London.Google Scholar
Peterson, U, Bergstrom, G, Demerouti, E, Gustavsson, P, Asberg, M, Nygren, A (2011). Burnout levels and self-rated health prospectively predict future long-term sickness absence: a study among female health professionals. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 53, 788–793.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Selic, P, Petek, D, Serec, M, Rus-Makovec, M (2010). Sick leave and its determinants in professional soldiers of the Slovenian Armed Forces. Croatian Medical Journal 51, 543–551.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Singh-Manoux, A, Martikainen, P, Ferrie, J, Zins, M, Marmot, M, Goldberg, M (2006). What does self rated health measure? Results from the British Whitehall II and French Gazel cohort studies. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 60, 364–372.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sproston, K, Primatesta, P (eds) (2004). Health Survey for England 2003. The Stationery Office: London.Google Scholar
Staland Nyman, C, Andersson, L, Spak, F, Hensing, G (2009). Exploring consequences of sickness absence – a longitudinal study on changes in self-rated physical health. Work 34, 315–324.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stansfeld, S (2002). Work, personality and mental health. British Journal of Psychiatry 181, 96–98.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stansfeld, SA, North, FM, White, I, Marmot, MG (1995). Work characteristics and psychiatric disorder in civil servants in London. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 49, 48–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
StataCorp (2005). STATA Statistical Software: Release 9.1. Stata Corporation: College Station, TX.Google Scholar
Sterne, JA, White, IR, Carlin, JB, Spratt, M, Royston, P, Kenward, MG, Wood, AM, Carpenter, JR (2009). Multiple imputation for missing data in epidemiological and clinical research: potential and pitfalls. British Medical Journal 338, b2393.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Upmark, M, Lundberg, I, Sadigh, J, Bigert, C (2001). Conditions during childhood and adolescence as explanations of social class differences in disability pension among young men. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 29, 96–103.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van den Berg, T, Schuring, M, Avendano, M, Mackenbach, J, Burdorf, A (2010). The impact of ill health on exit from paid employment in Europe among older workers. Occupational and Environmental Medicine 67, 845–852.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Voss, M, Stark, S, Alfredsson, L, Vingard, E, Josephson, M (2008). Comparisons of self-reported and register data on sickness absence among public employees in Sweden. Occupational and Environmental Medicine 65, 61–67.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Waddell, G, Aylward, M, Sawney, P (2002). Back Pain, Incapacity for Work and Social Security Benefits: An International Literature Review and Analysis. Royal Society of Medicine: London.Google Scholar
Waddell, G, Burton, K, Aylward, M (2007). Work and common health problems. Journal of Insurance Medicine 39, 109–120.Google ScholarPubMed
Wessely, S, Hotopf, M, Sharpe, M (1998). Chronic Fatigue and its Syndromes. Oxford University Press: Oxford.CrossRefGoogle Scholar