Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/58686 
Year of Publication: 
2012
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 6452
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
Mental health problems - and depression in particular - have been rising internationally. The link between poor mental health and poor educational outcomes is particularly interesting in the case of the UK which has a low international ranking both on measures of child wellbeing and the probability of early drop-out from the labour market and education. We study this issue using a large longitudinal study of a recent cohort of teenagers in England. We use the General Health Questionnaire to derive measures of poor mental health. We find a large negative association between mental health problems and educational outcomes - where we consider examination results before leaving compulsory education and the probability of being not in education, employment or training at a young age. The association is large even after including a very rich set of controls. Results are stronger for girls and also vary according to the different components of the mental health measure. We also explore the potential role of intermediary mechanisms (truancy and risky behaviors).
Subjects: 
mental health
educational attainment
drop-out
JEL: 
I1
I2
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.