Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/312025 
Year of Publication: 
2024
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 17586
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
We provide evidence that the social norm (expectation) that adults work has a substantial detrimental causal effect on the mental well-being of unemployed men in mid-life, as substantial as, e.g., the detriment of being widowed. As their peers in age retire and the social norm weakens, the mental well-being of the unemployed improves. Using data on individuals aged 50+ from 10 European countries, we identify the social norm of work effect using exogenous variation in the earliest eligibility age for old-age public pensions across countries and birth cohorts.
Subjects: 
mental well-being
social norm of work
retirement institution
JEL: 
I10
I31
J60
D63
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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