Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/33928 
Year of Publication: 
2006
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 2231
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
Mental illness is associated with large costs to individuals and society. Education improves various health outcomes but little work has been done on mental illness. To obtain unbiased estimates of the effect of education on mental health, we rely on a rich longitudinal dataset that contains health information from childhood to adulthood and thus allow us to control for fixed effects in mental health. We measure two health outcomes: malaise score and depression and estimate the extensive and intensive margins of education on mental health using various estimators. For all estimators, accounting for the endogeneity of education augments its protecting effect on mental health. We find that the effect of education is greater at mid-level of qualifications, for women and for individuals at greater risk of mental illness. The effects of education are observed at all ages, additionally education also reduces the transition to depression. These results suggest substantial returns to education in term of improved mental health.
Subjects: 
returns to education
mental health
JEL: 
I12
I29
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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