Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/213853 
Year of Publication: 
2020
Series/Report no.: 
IAAEU Discussion Paper Series in Economics No. 02/2020
Publisher: 
University of Trier, Institute for Labour Law and Industrial Relations in the European Union (IAAEU), Trier
Abstract: 
We investigate whether relative age (i.e. the age gap between classmates) affects life satisfaction and health in adolescence. We analyse data on students between 10 and 17 years of age from the international survey 'Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children' and find robust evidence that a twelve-month increase in relative age (i.e. the hypothetical maximum age gap between classmates) i) increases life satisfaction by 0.168 standard deviations, ii) increases selfrated general health by 0.108 standard deviations, iii) decreases psychosomatic complaints by 0.072 standard deviations, and iv) decreases chances of being overweight by 2.4%. These effects are comparable in size to the effects of students' household socio-economic status. Finally, gaps in life satisfaction are the only ones to reduce with the increase in absolute age, but only in countries where the first tracking of students occurs at 14 years of age or later.
Subjects: 
Academic Settings
Adolescent Characteristics
Education Policy
Life-Satisfaction
Health Outcomes
JEL: 
C26
D04
I21
I24
I31
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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