How does the economic slowdown affect the mental health of children?

One study examined the effects of economic conditions on children's mental health, concluding that the economic downturn was having a negative impact on children's mental health.

Previous studies have been conducted on the link between economic conditions and health. However, often these studies do not consider the impact of the economic downturn on children's mental health. According to Wiley, children's mental health presents the most common and serious health problems for children and adolescents, hence the importance of the study.

How does the economic situation affect the mental health of children?

The new study in The health economics It is based on data from the National Health Interview Survey conducted in 2001-2013. She found that as the United States weakened, children's mental health deteriorated and the use of special education services for emotional problems increased. The study is based on data from the National Health Interview Survey conducted between 2001 and 2013.

In addition, the researchers found that the effects of the economic downturn on their mental health were comparable whether the measure used was the unemployment rate or the housing price indexes. The effects were observed between bades and ages (4-11 and 12-17 years).

The implications for economic policy responses

In the study, the authors explain that in addition to providing new information on the determinants of children's mental health, "our findings have implications for policy responses to poor economic conditions. We confirm that the consequences of a bad economy go beyond the labor market actors. These spillovers suggest that policy responses to weak economic conditions may have larger effects than expected. Interventions such as extending unemployment benefits to compensate for lost income, for example, can have beneficial effects on children's health and be neglected. "

The authors add, "Our badyzes of possible mechanisms linking economic conditions to children's mental health suggest that parental unemployment can not fully explain the relationship between children's economic conditions and mental health."