Sample records for absolute educational inequalities

  1. Absolute and relative educational inequalities in depression in Europe.

    PubMed

    Dudal, Pieter; Bracke, Piet

    2016-09-01

    To investigate (1) the size of absolute and relative educational inequalities in depression, (2) their variation between European countries, and (3) their relationship with underlying prevalence rates. Analyses are based on the European Social Survey, rounds three and six (N = 57,419). Depression is measured using the shortened Centre of Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Education is coded by use of the International Standard Classification of Education. Country-specific logistic regressions are applied. Results point to an elevated risk of depressive symptoms among the lower educated. The cross-national patterns differ between absolute and relative measurements. For men, large relative inequalities are found for countries including Denmark and Sweden, but are accompanied by small absolute inequalities. For women, large relative and absolute inequalities are found in Belgium, Bulgaria, and Hungary. Results point to an empirical association between inequalities and the underlying prevalence rates. However, the strength of the association is only moderate. This research stresses the importance of including both measurements for comparative research and suggests the inclusion of the level of population health in research into inequalities in health.

  2. Absolute and Relative Socioeconomic Health Inequalities across Age Groups

    PubMed Central

    van Zon, Sander K. R.; Bültmann, Ute; Mendes de Leon, Carlos F.; Reijneveld, Sijmen A.

    2015-01-01

    Background The magnitude of socioeconomic health inequalities differs across age groups. It is less clear whether socioeconomic health inequalities differ across age groups by other factors that are known to affect the relation between socioeconomic position and health, like the indicator of socioeconomic position, the health outcome, gender, and as to whether socioeconomic health inequalities are measured in absolute or in relative terms. The aim is to investigate whether absolute and relative socioeconomic health inequalities differ across age groups by indicator of socioeconomic position, health outcome and gender. Methods The study sample was derived from the baseline measurement of the LifeLines Cohort Study and consisted of 95,432 participants. Socioeconomic position was measured as educational level and household income. Physical and mental health were measured with the RAND-36. Age concerned eleven 5-years age groups. Absolute inequalities were examined by comparing means. Relative inequalities were examined by comparing Gini-coefficients. Analyses were performed for both health outcomes by both educational level and household income. Analyses were performed for all age groups, and stratified by gender. Results Absolute and relative socioeconomic health inequalities differed across age groups by indicator of socioeconomic position, health outcome, and gender. Absolute inequalities were most pronounced for mental health by household income. They were larger in younger than older age groups. Relative inequalities were most pronounced for physical health by educational level. Gini-coefficients were largest in young age groups and smallest in older age groups. Conclusions Absolute and relative socioeconomic health inequalities differed cross-sectionally across age groups by indicator of socioeconomic position, health outcome and gender. Researchers should critically consider the implications of choosing a specific age group, in addition to the indicator of

  3. Trends in absolute and relative educational inequalities in four modifiable ischaemic heart disease risk factors: repeated cross-sectional surveys from the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT) 1984–2008

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background There has been an overall decrease in incident ischaemic heart disease (IHD), but the reduction in IHD risk factors has been greater among those with higher social position. Increased social inequalities in IHD mortality in Scandinavian countries is often referred to as the Scandinavian “public health puzzle”. The objective of this study was to examine trends in absolute and relative educational inequalities in four modifiable ischaemic heart disease risk factors (smoking, diabetes, hypertension and high total cholesterol) over the last three decades among Norwegian middle-aged women and men. Methods Population-based, cross-sectional data from The Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT): HUNT 1 (1984–1986), HUNT 2 (1995–1997) and HUNT 3 (2006–2008), women and men 40–59 years old. Educational inequalities were assessed using the Slope Index of Inequality (SII) and The Relative Index of Inequality (RII). Results Smoking prevalence increased for all education groups among women and decreased in men. Relative and absolute educational inequalities in smoking widened in both genders, with significantly higher absolute inequalities among women than men in the two last surveys. Diabetes prevalence increased in all groups. Relative inequalities in diabetes were stable, while absolute inequalities increased both among women (p = 0.05) and among men (p = 0.01). Hypertension prevalence decreased in all groups. Relative inequalities in hypertension widened over time in both genders. However, absolute inequalities in hypertension decreased among women (p = 0.05) and were stable among men (p = 0.33). For high total cholesterol relative and absolute inequalities remained stable in both genders. Conclusion Widening absolute educational inequalities in smoking and diabetes over the last three decades gives rise to concern. The mechanisms behind these results are less clear, and future studies are needed to assess if educational inequalities in

  4. Trends in educational inequalities in cause specific mortality in Norway from 1960 to 2010: a turning point for educational inequalities in cause specific mortality of Norwegian men after the millennium?

    PubMed

    Strand, Bjørn Heine; Steingrímsdóttir, Ólöf Anna; Grøholt, Else-Karin; Ariansen, Inger; Graff-Iversen, Sidsel; Næss, Øyvind

    2014-11-24

    Educational inequalities in total mortality in Norway have widened during 1960-2000. We wanted to investigate if inequalities have continued to increase in the post millennium decade, and which causes of deaths were the main drivers. All deaths (total and cause specific) in the adult Norwegian population aged 45-74 years over five decades, until 2010 were included; in all 708,449 deaths and over 62 million person years. Two indices of inequalities were used to measure inequality and changes in inequalities over time, on the relative scale (Relative Index of Inequality, RII) and on the absolute scale (Slope Index of Inequality, SII). Relative inequalities in total mortality increased over the five decades in both genders. Among men absolute inequalities stabilized during 2000-2010, after steady, significant increases each decade back to the 1960s, while in women, absolute inequalities continued to increase significantly during the last decade. The stabilization in absolute inequalities among men in the last decade was mostly due to a fall in inequalities in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality and lung cancer and respiratory disease mortality. Still, in this last decade, the absolute inequalities in cause-specific mortality among men were mostly due to cardiovascular diseases (CVD) (34% of total mortality inequality), lung cancer and respiratory diseases (21%). Among women the absolute inequalities in mortality were mostly due to lung cancer and chronic lower respiratory tract diseases (30%) and CVD (27%). In men, absolute inequalities in mortality have stopped increasing, seemingly due to reduction in inequalities in CVD mortality. Absolute inequality in mortality continues to widen among women, mostly due to death from lung cancer and chronic lung disease. Relative educational inequalities in mortality are still on the rise for Norwegian men and women.

  5. The impact of increasing income inequalities on educational inequalities in mortality - An analysis of six European countries.

    PubMed

    Hoffmann, Rasmus; Hu, Yannan; de Gelder, Rianne; Menvielle, Gwenn; Bopp, Matthias; Mackenbach, Johan P

    2016-07-08

    Over the past decades, both health inequalities and income inequalities have been increasing in many European countries, but it is unknown whether and how these trends are related. We test the hypothesis that trends in health inequalities and trends in income inequalities are related, i.e. that countries with a stronger increase in income inequalities have also experienced a stronger increase in health inequalities. We collected trend data on all-cause and cause-specific mortality, as well as on the household income of people aged 35-79, for Belgium, Denmark, England & Wales, France, Slovenia, and Switzerland. We calculated absolute and relative differences in mortality and income between low- and high-educated people for several time points in the 1990s and 2000s. We used fixed-effects panel regression models to see if changes in income inequality predicted changes in mortality inequality. The general trend in income inequality between high- and low-educated people in the six countries is increasing, while the mortality differences between educational groups show diverse trends, with absolute differences mostly decreasing and relative differences increasing in some countries but not in others. We found no association between trends in income inequalities and trends in inequalities in all-cause mortality, and trends in mortality inequalities did not improve when adjusted for rising income inequalities. This result held for absolute as well as for relative inequalities. A cause-specific analysis revealed some association between income inequality and mortality inequality for deaths from external causes, and to some extent also from cardiovascular diseases, but without statistical significance. We find no support for the hypothesis that increasing income inequality explains increasing health inequalities. Possible explanations are that other factors are more important mediators of the effect of education on health, or more simply that income is not an important

  6. Absolute Value Inequalities: High School Students' Solutions and Misconceptions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Almog, Nava; Ilany, Bat-Sheva

    2012-01-01

    Inequalities are one of the foundational subjects in high school math curricula, but there is a lack of academic research into how students learn certain types of inequalities. This article fills part of the research gap by presenting the findings of a study that examined high school students' methods of approaching absolute value inequalities,…

  7. A Conceptual Approach to Absolute Value Equations and Inequalities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ellis, Mark W.; Bryson, Janet L.

    2011-01-01

    The absolute value learning objective in high school mathematics requires students to solve far more complex absolute value equations and inequalities. When absolute value problems become more complex, students often do not have sufficient conceptual understanding to make any sense of what is happening mathematically. The authors suggest that the…

  8. Time trends in absolute and relative socioeconomic inequalities in leisure time physical inactivity in northern Sweden.

    PubMed

    Szilcz, Máté; Mosquera, Paola A; Sebastián, Miguel San; Gustafsson, Per E

    2018-02-01

    The aim was to investigate the time trends in educational, occupational, and income-related inequalities in leisure time physical inactivity in 2006, 2010, and 2014 in northern Swedish women and men. This study was based on data obtained from the repeated cross-sectional Health on Equal Terms survey of 2006, 2010, and 2014. The analytical sample consisted of 20,667 (2006), 31,787 (2010), and 21,613 (2014) individuals, aged 16-84. Logistic regressions were used to model the probability of physical inactivity given a set of explanatory variables. Slope index of inequality (SII) and relative index of inequality (RII) were used as summary measures of the social gradient in physical inactivity. The linear trend in inequalities and difference between gender and years were estimated by interaction analyses. The year 2010 displayed the highest physical inactivity inequalities for all socioeconomic position indicators, but educational and occupational inequalities decreased in 2014. However, significant positive linear trends were found in absolute and relative income inequalities. Moreover, women had significantly higher RII of education in physical inactivity in 2014 and significantly higher SII and RII of income in physical inactivity in 2010, than did men in the same years. The recent reduction in educational and occupational inequalities following the high inequalities around the time of the great recession in 2010 suggests that the current policies might be fairly effective. However, to eventually alleviate inequities in physical inactivity, the focus of the researchers and policymakers should be directed toward the widening trends of income inequalities in physical inactivity.

  9. Educational Inequalities in Post-Hip Fracture Mortality: A NOREPOS Study.

    PubMed

    Omsland, Tone K; Eisman, John A; Naess, Øyvind; Center, Jacqueline R; Gjesdal, Clara G; Tell, Grethe S; Emaus, Nina; Meyer, Haakon E; Søgaard, Anne Johanne; Holvik, Kristin; Schei, Berit; Forsmo, Siri; Magnus, Jeanette H

    2015-12-01

    Hip fractures are associated with high excess mortality. Education is an important determinant of health, but little is known about educational inequalities in post-hip fracture mortality. Our objective was to investigate educational inequalities in post-hip fracture mortality and to examine whether comorbidity or family composition could explain any association. We conducted a register-based population study of Norwegians aged 50 years and older from 2002 to 2010. We measured total mortality according to educational attainment in 56,269 hip fracture patients (NORHip) and in the general Norwegian population. Both absolute and relative educational inequalities in mortality in people with and without hip fracture were compared. There was an educational gradient in post-hip fracture mortality in both sexes. Compared with those with primary education only, the age-adjusted relative risk (RR) of mortality in hip fracture patients with tertiary education was 0.82 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.77-0.87) in men and 0.79 (95% CI 0.75-0.84) in women. Additional adjustments for Charlson comorbidity index, marital status, and number of children did not materially change the estimates. Regardless of educational attainment, the 1-year age-adjusted mortality was three- to fivefold higher in hip fracture patients compared with peers in the general population without fracture. The absolute differences in 1-year mortality according to educational attainment were considerably larger in hip fracture patients than in the population without hip fracture. Absolute educational inequalities in mortality were higher after hip fracture compared with the general population without hip fracture and were not mediated by comorbidity or family composition. Investigation of other possible mediating factors might help to identify new targets for interventions, based on lower educational attainment, to reduce post-hip fracture mortality. © 2015 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

  10. Educational inequalities in health in European welfare states: a social expenditure approach.

    PubMed

    Dahl, Espen; van der Wel, Kjetil A

    2013-03-01

    A puzzle in comparative health inequality research is the finding that egalitarian welfare states do not necessarily demonstrate narrow health inequalities. This paper interrogates into this puzzle by moving beyond welfare regimes to examine how welfare spending affect inequalities in self-rated across Europe. We operationalise welfare spending in four different ways and compare both absolute and relative health inequalities, as well as the level of poor self-rated health in the low education group across varying levels of social spending. The paper employs data from the EU Statistics of Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) and includes a sample of approximately 245,000 individuals aged 25-80+ years from 18 European countries. The data were examined by means of gender stratified multilevel logistic regression analyses. The results show that social expenditures are associated with lower health inequalities among women and, to a lesser degree, among men. Especially those with primary education benefit from high social transfers as compared with those who have tertiary education. This means that lower educational inequalities in health - in absolute and relative terms- are linked to higher social spending. The four different operationalisations of social spending produce similar patterns. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Absolute and relative educational inequalities in obesity among adults in Tehran: Findings from the Urban HEART study-2.

    PubMed

    Kiadaliri, Aliasghar A; Asadi-Lari, Mohsen; Kalantari, Naser; Jafari, Mehdi; Vaez Mahdavi, Mohammad Reza; Faghihzadeh, Soghrat

    2016-09-01

    The prevalence of obesity is increasing in Iran. Previous studies showed mixed results in relation to association between socioeconomic status and obesity in the country. The current study aimed to examine educational inequalities among adults in Tehran in 2011. Data on 90,435 persons 18 years and older from Urban Health Equity Assessment and Response Tool (Urban HEART-2) were analyzed. The Slope Index of Inequality (SII) and the Relative Index of Inequality (RII) were used for assessing educational inequalities in obesity. These measures were quantified using generalized linear models for the binomial family adjusted for sex and age. Subgroup analysis was conducted across sex, age groups and the 22 districts of Tehran. Both SII and RII showed substantial educational inequalities in obesity in favour of more educated adults [RII and SII (95% CI were equal to 2.91 (2.71-3.11) and 0.12 (0.12-0.13)), respectively]. These educational inequalities were persistent even after adjusting for employment, marital status and smoking. Subgroup analysis revealed that educational inequalities were more profound among women. While among men educational inequalities were generally increasing with age, an inverse trend was observed among women. Educational inequalities were observed within all 22 districts of Tehran and generally there were no statistically significant differences between districts. An inverse association between education and obesity was observed in the current study. To decrease educational inequalities in Tehran, priority should be given to younger women and older men. Further analyses are needed to explain these inequalities. Copyright © 2015 Asia Oceania Association for the Study of Obesity. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Increasing educational inequality in preterm birth in Quebec, Canada, 1981-2006.

    PubMed

    Auger, Nathalie; Roncarolo, Federico; Harper, Sam

    2011-12-01

    Few studies have evaluated the relationship between preterm birth (PTB) and maternal education over time. We sought to determine whether educational inequalities in PTB have increased in Québec, Canada. The authors analysed 2,124,909 singleton live births from 1981 to 2006, and computed the Relative Index of Inequality (RII) and Slope Index of Inequality (SII) with 95% CIs for the relationship between maternal education and extreme, very or moderate PTB (≤27, 28-31, and 32-36 completed weeks of gestation, respectively) for five periods (1981-1985, 1986-1990, 1991-1995, 1996-2000, 2001-2006), adjusting for maternal age, marital status, birthplace, language spoken at home, parity and infant sex. Average rates of extreme and moderate PTB increased over time but decreased for very PTB. A statistically significant increase in the RII over time was present for extreme and moderate PTB. The adjusted RII for extreme PTB increased from 1.58 (95% CI 1.24 to 2.01) in 1981-1985 to 3.11 (95% CI 2.54 to 3.81) in 2001-2006. For moderate PTB, the corresponding RIIs were 1.53 (95% CI 1.44 to 1.61) and 1.91 (95% CI 1.81 to 2.01). Absolute differences in the PTB proportion between the least and most educated mothers increased from 1981 to 2006 for extreme (adjusted SII 0.11% vs 0.28%) and moderate PTB (adjusted SII 1.67% vs 3.11%). Absolute differences in the proportion very PTB did not increase. Relative and absolute educational inequalities in extreme and moderate PTB have increased over time in Québec. Relative increases were largest for extreme PTB, and absolute increases were largest for moderate PTB.

  13. Educational inequalities in tuberculosis mortality in sixteen European populations

    PubMed Central

    Álvarez, J. L.; Kunst, A. E.; Leinsalu, M.; Bopp, M.; Strand, B. H.; Menvielle, Gwenn; Lundberg, O.; Martikainen, P.; Deboosere, P.; Kalediene, R.; Artnik, B.; Mackenbach, J. P.; Richardus, J. H.

    2011-01-01

    Objective We aim to describe the magnitude of socioeconomic inequalities in tuberculosis (TB) mortality by level of education in male, female, urban, and rural populations in several European countries. Design Data were obtained from the Eurothine project covering 16 populations between 1990 and 2003. Age- and sex-standardized mortality rates, the Relative Index of Inequality, and the slope index of inequality were used to assess educational inequalities. Results The number of TB deaths reported was 8530, with a death rate of 3 per 100 000 per year, of which 73% were males. Educational inequalities in TB mortality were present in all European populations. Inequalities in TB mortality were larger than in total mortality. Relative and absolute inequalities were large in Eastern Europe, and Baltic countries but relatively small in Southern countries and in Norway, Finland, and Sweden. Mortality inequalities were observed among both men and women, and in both rural and urban populations. Conclusions Socioeconomic inequalities in TB mortality exist in all European countries. Firm political commitment is required to reduce inequalities in the social determinants of TB incidence. Targeted public health measures are called for to improve vulnerable groups’ access to treatment and thereby reduce TB mortality. PMID:22008757

  14. Changing educational inequalities in sporting inactivity among adults in Germany: a trend study from 2003 to 2012.

    PubMed

    Hoebel, Jens; Finger, Jonas D; Kuntz, Benjamin; Kroll, Lars E; Manz, Kristin; Lange, Cornelia; Lampert, Thomas

    2017-06-06

    Social inequalities in health can be explained in part by the social patterning of leisure-time physical activity, such as non-participation in sports. This study is the first to explore whether absolute and relative educational inequalities in sporting inactivity among adults have changed in Germany since the early 2000s. Data from four cross-sectional national health surveys conducted in 2003 (n = 6890), 2009 (n = 16,418), 2010 (n = 17,145) and 2012 (n = 13,744) were analysed. The study population was aged 25-69 years in each survey. Sporting inactivity was defined as no sports participation during the preceding 3 months. The regression-based Slope Index of Inequality (SII) and Relative Index of Inequality (RII) were calculated to estimate the extent of absolute and relative educational inequalities in sporting inactivity, respectively. Sporting inactivity was consistently more prevalent in less-educated groups. The overall prevalence of sporting inactivity declined significantly over time. However, the decline was observed only in the high and medium education groups, while no change was observed in the low education group. Both absolute and relative educational inequalities in sporting inactivity were found to have widened significantly between 2003 (SII = 0.30, 95% CI = 0.25-0.35; RII = 2.08, 95% CI = 1.83-2.38) and 2012 (SII = 0.41, 95% CI = 0.37-0.45; RII = 3.44, 95% CI = 3.03-3.91). Interaction analysis showed that these increases in inequalities were larger in the younger population under the age of 50 than among the elderly. The findings suggest that the gap in sports participation between adults with high and low educational attainment has widened in both absolute and relative terms because of an increase in sports participation among the better educated. Health-enhancing physical activity interventions specifically targeted to less-educated younger adults are needed to prevent future increases in social inequalities in health.

  15. How do trends in mortality inequalities by deprivation and education in Scotland and England & Wales compare? A repeat cross-sectional study.

    PubMed

    McCartney, Gerry; Popham, Frank; Katikireddi, Srinivasa Vittal; Walsh, David; Schofield, Lauren

    2017-07-21

    To compare the trends in mortality inequalities by educational attainment with trends using area deprivation. Scotland and England & Wales (E&W). All people resident in Scotland and E&W between 1981 and 2011 aged 35-79 years. Absolute inequalities (measured using the Slope Index of Inequality (SII)) and relative inequalities (measured using the Relative Index of Inequality (RII)) in all-cause mortality. Relative inequalities in mortality by area deprivation have consistently increased for men and women in Scotland and E&W between 1981-1983 and 2010-2012. Absolute inequalities increased for men and women in Scotland, and for women in E&W, between 1981-1983 and 2000-2002 before subsequently falling. For men in E&W, absolute inequalities were more stable until 2000-2002 before a subsequent decline. Both absolute and relative inequalities were consistently higher in men and in Scotland. These trends contrast markedly with the reported declines in mortality inequalities by educational attainment and apparent improvement of Scotland's inequalities with those in E&W. Trends in health inequalities differ when assessed using different measures of socioeconomic status, reflecting either genuinely variable trends in relation to different aspects of social stratification or varying error or bias. There are particular issues with the educational attainment data in Great Britain prior to 2001 that make these education-based estimates less certain. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  16. Diverging trends in educational inequalities in cancer mortality between men and women in the 2000s in France.

    PubMed

    Menvielle, Gwenn; Rey, Grégoire; Jougla, Eric; Luce, Danièle

    2013-09-10

    Socioeconomic inequalities in cancer mortality have been observed in different European countries and the US until the end of the 1990s, with changes over time in the magnitude of these inequalities and contrasted situations between countries. The aim of this study is to estimate relative and absolute educational differences in cancer mortality in France between 1999 and 2007, and to compare these inequalities with those reported during the 1990s. Data from a representative sample including 1% of the French population were analysed. Educational differences among people aged 30-74 were quantified with hazard ratios and relative indices of inequality (RII) computed using Cox regression models as well as mortality rate difference and population attributable fraction. In the period 1999-2007, large relative inequalities were found among men for total cancer and smoking and/or alcohol related cancers mortality (lung, head and neck, oesophagus). Among women, educational differences were reported for total cancer, head and neck and uterus cancer mortality. No association was found between education and breast cancer mortality. Slight educational differences in colorectal cancer mortality were observed in men and women. For most frequent cancers, no change was observed in the magnitude of relative inequalities in mortality between the 1990s and the 2000s, although the RII for lung cancer increased both in men and women. Among women, a large increase in absolute inequalities in mortality was observed for all cancers combined, lung, head and neck and colorectal cancer. In contrast, among men, absolute inequalities in mortality decreased for all smoking and/or alcohol related cancers. Although social inequalities in cancer mortality are still high among men, an encouraging trend is observed. Among women though, the situation regarding social inequalities is less favourable, mainly due to a health improvement limited to higher educated women. These inequalities may be expected

  17. Educational inequality in cardiovascular disease depends on diagnosis: A nationwide register based study from Denmark.

    PubMed

    Christensen, Anne V; Koch, Mette B; Davidsen, Michael; Jensen, Gorm B; Andersen, Lisbeth V; Juel, Knud

    2016-05-01

    Social inequality is present in the morbidity as well as the mortality of cardiovascular diseases. This paper aims to quantify and compare the level of educational inequality across different cardiovascular diagnoses. Register based study. Comparison of the extent of inequality across different cardiovascular diagnoses requires a measure of inequality which is comparable across subgroups with different educational distributions. The slope index of inequality and the relative index of inequality were applied for measuring inequalities in incidence of six cardiovascular diagnoses: ischaemic heart disease, acute myocardial infarction, valvular heart disease, congestive heart failure, atrial fibrillation and stroke in the period 2005-2009. All individuals in the general Danish population aged 35-84 years were followed in national registers regarding hospitalisation, death and education from 1985 to 2009 (annual average of 2.9 million people) to define incident cases. Marked educational inequality was found in the incidence of ischaemic heart disease, acute myocardial infarction, heart failure and stroke (relative index of inequality: 0.37 (95% confidence interval 0.34; 0.40) to 0.60 (0.57; 0.63), absolute index of inequality: -241 (-254.4; -227.4) to -37 (-42.7; -31.1)) while inequality in atrial fibrillation and, in particular, in valvular heart disease was small and insignificant (relative index of inequality: 0.57 (0.49; 0.65) to 0.97 (0.88; 1.08), absolute index of inequality: -29 (-35.1; -21.9) to -1 (-4.8; -3.8)). The degree of educational inequality in cardiovascular diseases depends on the diagnosis, with the highest inequality in ischaemic heart disease, acute myocardial infarction, heart failure and stroke. Small differences were found between men and women. © The European Society of Cardiology 2015.

  18. Easy Absolute Values? Absolutely

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taylor, Sharon E.; Mittag, Kathleen Cage

    2015-01-01

    The authors teach a problem-solving course for preservice middle-grades education majors that includes concepts dealing with absolute-value computations, equations, and inequalities. Many of these students like mathematics and plan to teach it, so they are adept at symbolic manipulations. Getting them to think differently about a concept that they…

  19. Diverging trends in educational inequalities in cancer mortality between men and women in the 2000s in France

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Socioeconomic inequalities in cancer mortality have been observed in different European countries and the US until the end of the 1990s, with changes over time in the magnitude of these inequalities and contrasted situations between countries. The aim of this study is to estimate relative and absolute educational differences in cancer mortality in France between 1999 and 2007, and to compare these inequalities with those reported during the 1990s. Methods Data from a representative sample including 1% of the French population were analysed. Educational differences among people aged 30–74 were quantified with hazard ratios and relative indices of inequality (RII) computed using Cox regression models as well as mortality rate difference and population attributable fraction. Results In the period 1999–2007, large relative inequalities were found among men for total cancer and smoking and/or alcohol related cancers mortality (lung, head and neck, oesophagus). Among women, educational differences were reported for total cancer, head and neck and uterus cancer mortality. No association was found between education and breast cancer mortality. Slight educational differences in colorectal cancer mortality were observed in men and women. For most frequent cancers, no change was observed in the magnitude of relative inequalities in mortality between the 1990s and the 2000s, although the RII for lung cancer increased both in men and women. Among women, a large increase in absolute inequalities in mortality was observed for all cancers combined, lung, head and neck and colorectal cancer. In contrast, among men, absolute inequalities in mortality decreased for all smoking and/or alcohol related cancers. Conclusion Although social inequalities in cancer mortality are still high among men, an encouraging trend is observed. Among women though, the situation regarding social inequalities is less favourable, mainly due to a health improvement limited to higher educated

  20. Entrenched geographical and socioeconomic disparities in child mortality: trends in absolute and relative inequalities in Cambodia.

    PubMed

    Jimenez-Soto, Eliana; Durham, Jo; Hodge, Andrew

    2014-01-01

    Cambodia has made considerable improvements in mortality rates for children under the age of five and neonates. These improvements may, however, mask considerable disparities between subnational populations. In this paper, we examine the extent of the country's child mortality inequalities. Mortality rates for children under-five and neonates were directly estimated using the 2000, 2005 and 2010 waves of the Cambodian Demographic Health Survey. Disparities were measured on both absolute and relative scales using rate differences and ratios, and where applicable, slope and relative indices of inequality by levels of rural/urban location, regions and household wealth. Since 2000, considerable reductions in under-five and to a lesser extent in neonatal mortality rates have been observed. This mortality decline has, however, been accompanied by an increase in relative inequality in both rates of child mortality for geography-related stratifying markers. For absolute inequality amongst regions, most trends are increasing, particularly for neonatal mortality, but are not statistically significant. The only exception to this general pattern is the statistically significant positive trend in absolute inequality for under-five mortality in the Coastal region. For wealth, some evidence for increases in both relative and absolute inequality for neonates is observed. Despite considerable gains in reducing under-five and neonatal mortality at a national level, entrenched and increased geographical and wealth-based inequality in mortality, at least on a relative scale, remain. As expected, national progress seems to be associated with the period of political and macroeconomic stability that started in the early 2000s. However, issues of quality of care and potential non-inclusive economic growth might explain remaining disparities, particularly across wealth and geography markers. A focus on further addressing key supply and demand side barriers to accessing maternal and child

  1. Educational Inequality and Income Inequality: An Empirical Study on China

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yang, Jun; Huang, Xiao; Li, Xiaoyu

    2009-01-01

    Based on the endogenous growth theory, this paper uses the Gini coefficient to measure educational inequality and studies the empirical relationship between educational inequality and income inequality through a simultaneous equation model. The results show that: (1) Income inequality leads to educational inequality while the reduction of…

  2. Educational inequalities in acute myocardial infarction incidence in Norway: a nationwide cohort study.

    PubMed

    Igland, Jannicke; Vollset, Stein Emil; Nygård, Ottar K; Sulo, Gerhard; Ebbing, Marta; Tell, Grethe S

    2014-01-01

    Increasing differences in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality across levels of education have been reported in Norway. The aim of the study was to investigate educational inequalities in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) incidence and whether such inequalities have changed during the past decade using a nationwide longitudinal study design. Data on 141 332 incident (first) AMIs in Norway during 2001-2009 were obtained through the Cardiovascular Disease in Norway (CVDNOR) project. Educational inequalities in AMI incidence were assessed in terms of age-standardised incidence rates stratified on educational level, incidence rate ratios (IRR), relative index of inequality (RII) and slope index of inequality (SII). All calculations were conducted in four gender and age strata: Men and women aged 35-69 and 70-94 years. AMI Incidence rates decreased during 2001-2009 for all educational levels except in women aged 35-69 among whom only those with basic education had a significant decrease. In all gender and age groups; those with the highest educational level had the lowest rates. The strongest relative difference was found among women aged 35-69, with IRR (95% CI) for basic versus tertiary education 3.04 (2.85-3.24)) and RII (95% CI) equal to 4.36 (4.03-4.71). The relative differences did not change during 2001-2009 in any of the four gender and age groups, but absolute inequalities measured as SII decreased among the oldest men and women. There are substantial educational inequalities in AMI incidence in Norway, especially for women aged 35-69. Relative inequalities did not change from 2001 to 2009.

  3. Educational inequalities in mortality over four decades in Norway: prospective study of middle aged men and women followed for cause specific mortality, 1960-2000.

    PubMed

    Strand, Bjørn Heine; Grøholt, Else-Karin; Steingrímsdóttir, Olöf Anna; Blakely, Tony; Graff-Iversen, Sidsel; Naess, Øyvind

    2010-02-23

    To determine the extent to which educational inequalities in relation to mortality widened in Norway during 1960-2000 and which causes of death were the main drivers of this disparity. Nationally representative prospective study. Four cohorts of the Norwegian population aged 45-64 years in 1960, 1970, 1980, and 1990 and followed up for mortality over 10 years. 359 547 deaths and 32 904 589 person years. All cause mortality and deaths due to cancer of lung, trachea, or bronchus; other cancer; cardiovascular diseases; suicide; external causes; chronic lower respiratory tract diseases; or other causes. Absolute and relative indices of inequality were used to present differences in mortality by educational level (basic, secondary, and tertiary). Mortality fell from the 1960s to the 1990s in all educational groups. At the same time the proportion of adults in the basic education group, with the highest mortality, decreased substantially. As mortality dropped more among those with the highest level of education, inequalities widened. Absolute inequalities in mortality denoting deaths among the basic education groups minus deaths among the high education groups doubled in men and increased by a third in women. This is equivalent to an increase in the slope index of inequality of 105% in men and 32% in women. Inequalities on a relative scale widened more, from 1.33 to 2.24 among men (P=0.01) and from 1.52 to 2.19 among women (P=0.05). Among men, absolute inequalities mainly increased as a result of cardiovascular diseases, lung cancer, and chronic lower respiratory tract diseases. Among women this was mainly due to lung cancer and chronic lower respiratory tract diseases. Unlike the situation in men, absolute inequalities in deaths due to cardiovascular causes narrowed among women. Chronic lower respiratory tract diseases contributed more to the disparities in inequalities among women than among men. All educational groups showed a decline in mortality. Nevertheless, and

  4. Welfare states, the Great Recession and health: Trends in educational inequalities in self-reported health in 26 European countries.

    PubMed

    Leão, Teresa; Campos-Matos, Inês; Bambra, Clare; Russo, Giuliano; Perelman, Julian

    2018-01-01

    Although socioeconomic inequalities in health have long been observed in Europe, few studies have analysed their recent patterning. In this paper, we examined how educational inequalities in self-reported health have evolved in different European countries and welfare state regimes over the last decade, which was troubled by the Great Recession. We used cross-sectional data from the EU-SILC survey for adults from 26 European countries, from 2005 to 2014 (n = 3,030,595). We first calculated education-related absolute (SII) and relative (RII) inequalities in poor self-reported health by country-year, adjusting for age, sex, and EU-SILC survey weights. We then regressed the year- and country-specific RII and SII on a yearly time trend, globally and by welfare regime, adjusting for country fixed effects. We further adjusted the analysis for the economic cycle using GDP growth, unemployment, and income inequality. Overall, absolute inequalities persisted and relative inequalities slightly widened (betaRII = 0.0313, p<0.05). There were substantial differences by welfare regime: Anglo-Saxon countries experienced the largest increase in absolute inequalities (betaSII = 0.0032, p<0.05), followed by Bismarkian countries (betaSII = 0.0024, p<0.001), while they reduced in Post-Communist countries (betaSII = -0.0022, p<0.001). Post-Communist countries also experienced a widening in relative inequalities (betaRII = 0.1112, p<0.001), which were found to be stable elsewhere. Adjustment for income inequality only explained such trend in Anglo-Saxon countries. Educational inequalities in health have overall persisted across European countries over the last decade. However, there is considerable variation across welfare regimes, possibly related to underpinning social safety nets and to austerity measures implemented during this 10-year period.

  5. Welfare states, the Great Recession and health: Trends in educational inequalities in self-reported health in 26 European countries

    PubMed Central

    Campos-Matos, Inês; Bambra, Clare; Russo, Giuliano

    2018-01-01

    Background Although socioeconomic inequalities in health have long been observed in Europe, few studies have analysed their recent patterning. In this paper, we examined how educational inequalities in self-reported health have evolved in different European countries and welfare state regimes over the last decade, which was troubled by the Great Recession. Methods We used cross-sectional data from the EU-SILC survey for adults from 26 European countries, from 2005 to 2014 (n = 3,030,595). We first calculated education-related absolute (SII) and relative (RII) inequalities in poor self-reported health by country-year, adjusting for age, sex, and EU-SILC survey weights. We then regressed the year- and country-specific RII and SII on a yearly time trend, globally and by welfare regime, adjusting for country fixed effects. We further adjusted the analysis for the economic cycle using GDP growth, unemployment, and income inequality. Results Overall, absolute inequalities persisted and relative inequalities slightly widened (betaRII = 0.0313, p<0.05). There were substantial differences by welfare regime: Anglo-Saxon countries experienced the largest increase in absolute inequalities (betaSII = 0.0032, p<0.05), followed by Bismarkian countries (betaSII = 0.0024, p<0.001), while they reduced in Post-Communist countries (betaSII = -0.0022, p<0.001). Post-Communist countries also experienced a widening in relative inequalities (betaRII = 0.1112, p<0.001), which were found to be stable elsewhere. Adjustment for income inequality only explained such trend in Anglo-Saxon countries. Conclusions Educational inequalities in health have overall persisted across European countries over the last decade. However, there is considerable variation across welfare regimes, possibly related to underpinning social safety nets and to austerity measures implemented during this 10-year period. PMID:29474377

  6. Educational inequality in the occurrence of abdominal obesity: Pró-Saúde Study

    PubMed Central

    Alves, Ronaldo Fernandes Santos; Faerstein, Eduardo

    2015-01-01

    OBJECTIVE To estimate the degree of educational inequality in the occurrence of abdominal obesity in a population of non-faculty civil servants at university campi. METHODS In this cross-sectional study, we used data from 3,117 subjects of both genders aged 24 to 65-years old, regarding the baseline of Pró-Saúde Study, 1999-2001. Abdominal obesity was defined according to abdominal circumference thresholds of 88 cm for women and 102 cm for men. A multi-dimensional, self-administered questionnaire was used to evaluate education levels and demographic variables. Slope and relative indices of inequality, and Chi-squared test for linear trend were used in the data analysis. All analyses were stratified by genders, and the indices of inequality were standardized by age. RESULTS Abdominal obesity was the most prevalent among women (43.5%; 95%CI 41.2;45.9), as compared to men (24.3%; 95%CI 22.1;26.7), in all educational strata and age ranges. The association between education levels and abdominal obesity was an inverse one among women (p < 0.001); it was not statistically significant among men (p = 0.436). The educational inequality regarding abdominal obesity in the female population, in absolute terms (slope index of inequality), was 24.0% (95%CI 15.5;32.6). In relative terms (relative index of inequality), it was 2.8 (95%CI 1.9;4.1), after the age adjustment. CONCLUSIONS Gender inequality in the prevalence of abdominal obesity increases with older age and lower education. The slope and relative indices of inequality summarize the strictly monotonous trend between education levels and abdominal obesity, and it described educational inequality regarding abdominal obesity among women. Such indices provide relevant quantitative estimates for monitoring abdominal obesity and dealing with health inequalities. PMID:26465669

  7. Trends in Educational Inequalities in Drug Poisoning Mortality: United States, 1994-2010.

    PubMed

    Richardson, Robin; Charters, Thomas; King, Nicholas; Harper, Sam

    2015-09-01

    We estimated trends in drug poisoning death rates by educational attainment and investigated educational inequalities in drug poisoning mortality by race, gender, and region. We linked drug poisoning death counts from the National Vital Statistics System to population denominators from the Current Population Survey to estimate drug poisoning rates by gender, race, region, and educational attainment (less than high school degree, high school degree, some college, college degree) from 1994 to 2010. There were 372,485 drug poisoning deaths. Education-related inequalities increased during the study among all demographic groups and varied by region. Absolute increases in educational inequalities were higher among Whites than Blacks and men than women. The age-adjusted rate difference between White men with less than a high school degree increased from 8.7 per 100,000 in 1994 to 27.4 in 2010 (change = 18.7). Among Black men, the corresponding increases were 11.7 and 18.3, respectively (change = 6.6). We found strong educational patterning in drug poisoning rates, chiefly by region and race. Rates are highest and increasing the fastest among groups with less education.

  8. Educational Inequalities in Acute Myocardial Infarction Incidence in Norway: A Nationwide Cohort Study

    PubMed Central

    Igland, Jannicke; Vollset, Stein Emil; Nygård, Ottar K.; Sulo, Gerhard; Ebbing, Marta; Tell, Grethe S.

    2014-01-01

    Background Increasing differences in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality across levels of education have been reported in Norway. The aim of the study was to investigate educational inequalities in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) incidence and whether such inequalities have changed during the past decade using a nationwide longitudinal study design. Methods Data on 141 332 incident (first) AMIs in Norway during 2001–2009 were obtained through the Cardiovascular Disease in Norway (CVDNOR) project. Educational inequalities in AMI incidence were assessed in terms of age-standardised incidence rates stratified on educational level, incidence rate ratios (IRR), relative index of inequality (RII) and slope index of inequality (SII). All calculations were conducted in four gender and age strata: Men and women aged 35–69 and 70–94 years. Results AMI Incidence rates decreased during 2001–2009 for all educational levels except in women aged 35–69 among whom only those with basic education had a significant decrease. In all gender and age groups; those with the highest educational level had the lowest rates. The strongest relative difference was found among women aged 35–69, with IRR (95% CI) for basic versus tertiary education 3.04 (2.85–3.24)) and RII (95% CI) equal to 4.36 (4.03–4.71). The relative differences did not change during 2001–2009 in any of the four gender and age groups, but absolute inequalities measured as SII decreased among the oldest men and women. Conclusions There are substantial educational inequalities in AMI incidence in Norway, especially for women aged 35–69. Relative inequalities did not change from 2001 to 2009. PMID:25188248

  9. Educational inequalities in mortality by cause of death: first national data for the Netherlands.

    PubMed

    Kulhánová, Ivana; Hoffmann, Rasmus; Eikemo, Terje A; Menvielle, Gwenn; Mackenbach, Johan P

    2014-10-01

    Using new facilities for linking large databases, we aimed to evaluate for the first time the magnitude of relative and absolute educational inequalities in mortality by sex and cause of death in the Netherlands. We analyzed data from Dutch Labour Force Surveys (1998-2002) with mortality follow-up 1998-2007 among people aged 30-79 years. We calculated hazard ratios using Cox proportional hazards model, age-standardized mortality rates and partial life expectancy by education. We compared results for the Netherlands with those for other European countries. The relative risk of dying was about two times higher among primary educated men and women as compared to their tertiary educated counterparts, leading to a gap in partial life expectancy of 3.4 years (men) and 2.4 years (women). Inequalities in mortality are similar to those in other countries in North-Western Europe, but inequalities in lung cancer mortality are substantially larger in the Netherlands, particularly among men. The Netherlands has large inequalities in mortality, especially for smoking-related causes of death. These large inequalities require the urgent attention of policy makers.

  10. Effects of Simulated Interventions to Improve School Entry Academic Skills on Socioeconomic Inequalities in Educational Achievement

    PubMed Central

    Chittleborough, Catherine R; Mittinty, Murthy N; Lawlor, Debbie A; Lynch, John W

    2014-01-01

    Randomized controlled trial evidence shows that interventions before age 5 can improve skills necessary for educational success; the effect of these interventions on socioeconomic inequalities is unknown. Using trial effect estimates, and marginal structural models with data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (n = 11,764, imputed), simulated effects of plausible interventions to improve school entry academic skills on socioeconomic inequality in educational achievement at age 16 were examined. Progressive universal interventions (i.e., more intense intervention for those with greater need) to improve school entry academic skills could raise population levels of educational achievement by 5% and reduce absolute socioeconomic inequality in poor educational achievement by 15%. PMID:25327718

  11. Educational Inequality in English Primary Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richards, Colin

    2008-01-01

    This paper summarises some English research findings related to educational inequality, particularly in inner urban schools. It documents how differences related to relative poverty are reflected in patterns of educational attainment as revealed by national tests results. It considers and evaluates how the issue of educational inequality in…

  12. Educational class inequalities in the incidence of coronary heart disease in Europe.

    PubMed

    Veronesi, Giovanni; Ferrario, Marco M; Kuulasmaa, Kari; Bobak, Martin; Chambless, Lloyd E; Salomaa, Veikko; Soderberg, Stefan; Pajak, Andrzej; Jørgensen, Torben; Amouyel, Philippe; Arveiler, Dominique; Drygas, Wojciech; Ferrieres, Jean; Giampaoli, Simona; Kee, Frank; Iacoviello, Licia; Malyutina, Sofia; Peters, Annette; Tamosiunas, Abdonas; Tunstall-Pedoe, Hugh; Cesana, Giancarlo

    2016-06-15

    To estimate the burden of social inequalities in coronary heart disease (CHD) and to identify their major determinants in 15 European populations. The MORGAM (MOnica Risk, Genetics, Archiving and Monograph) study comprised 49 cohorts of middle-aged European adults free of CHD (110 928 individuals) recruited mostly in the mid-1980s and 1990s, with comparable assessment of baseline risk and follow-up procedures. We derived three educational classes accounting for birth cohorts and used regression-based inequality measures of absolute differences in CHD rates and HRs (ie, Relative Index of Inequality, RII) for the least versus the most educated individuals. N=6522 first CHD events occurred during a median follow-up of 12 years. Educational class inequalities accounted for 343 and 170 additional CHD events per 100 000 person-years in the least educated men and women compared with the most educated, respectively. These figures corresponded to 48% and 71% of the average event rates in each gender group. Inequalities in CHD mortality were mainly driven by incidence in the Nordic countries, Scotland and Lithuania, and by 28-day case-fatality in the remaining central/South European populations. The pooled RIIs were 1.6 (95% CI 1.4 to 1.8) in men and 2.0 (1.7 to 2.4) in women, consistently across population. Risk factors accounted for a third of inequalities in CHD incidence; smoking was the major mediator in men, and High-Density-Lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol in women. Social inequalities in CHD are still widespread in Europe. Since the major determinants of inequalities followed geographical and gender-specific patterns, European-level interventions should be tailored across different European regions. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

  13. Educational inequalities in subjective health in Germany from 1994 to 2014: a trend analysis using the German Socio-Economic Panel study (GSOEP).

    PubMed

    Moor, Irene; Günther, Sebastian; Knöchelmann, Anja; Hoebel, Jens; Pförtner, Timo-Kolja; Lampert, Thomas; Richter, Matthias

    2018-06-08

    As trend studies have shown, health inequalities by income and occupation have widened or remained stable. However, research on time trends in educational inequalities in health in Germany is scarce. The aim of this study is to analyse how educational inequalities in health evolved over a period of 21 years in the middle-aged population in Germany, and whether the trends differ by gender. Data were obtained from the German Socio-Economic Panel covering the period from 1994 to 2014. In total, n=16 339 participants (106 221 person years) aged 30-49 years were included in the study sample. Educational level was measured based on the 'Comparative Analysis of Social Mobility in Industrial Nations' (CASMIN) classification. Health outcomes were self-rated health (SRH) as well as (mental and physical) health-related quality of life (HRQOL, SF-12v2). Absolute Index of Inequality (Slope Index of Inequality (SII)) and Relative Index of Inequality (RII) were calculated using linear and logarithmic regression analyses with robust SEs. Significant educational inequalities in SRH and physical HRQOL were found for almost every survey year from 1994 to 2014. Relative inequalities in SRH ranged from 1.50 to 2.10 in men and 1.25 to 1.87 in women (RII). Regarding physical HRQOL, the lowest educational group yielded 4.5 to 6.6 points (men) and 3.3 to 6.1 points (women) lower scores (SII). Although educational level increased over time, absolute and relative health inequalities remained largely stable over the last 21 years. For mental HRQOL, only few educational inequalities were found. This study found persistent educational inequalities in SRH and physical HRQOL among adults in Germany from 1994 to 2014. Our findings highlight the need to intensify efforts in social and health policies to tackle these persistent inequalities. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted

  14. Changes in mortality inequalities across occupations in Japan: a national register based study of absolute and relative measures, 1980-2010

    PubMed Central

    Toyokawa, Satoshi; Tamiya, Nanako; Takahashi, Hideto; Noguchi, Haruko; Kobayashi, Yasuki

    2017-01-01

    Objective Changes in mortality inequalities across socioeconomic groups have been a substantial public health concern worldwide. We investigated changes in absolute/relative mortality inequalities across occupations, and the contribution of different diseases to inequalities in tandem with the restructuring of the Japanese economy. Methods Using complete Japanese national death registries from 5 year intervals (1980–2010), all cause and cause specific age standardised mortality rates (ASMR per 100 000 people standardised using the Japanese standard population in 1985, aged 30–59 years) across 12 occupations were computed. Absolute and relative inequalities were measured in ASMR differences (RDs) and ASMR ratios (RRs) among occupations in comparison with manufacturing workers (reference). We also estimated the changing contribution of different diseases by calculating the differences in ASMR change between 1995 and 2010 for occupations and reference. Results All cause ASMRs tended to decrease in both sexes over the three decades except for male managers (increased by 71% points, 1995–2010). RDs across occupations were reduced for both sexes (civil servants 233.5 to −1.9 for men; sales workers 63.3 to 4.5 for women) but RRs increased for some occupations (professional workers 1.38 to 1.70; service workers 2.35 to 3.73) for men and decreased for women from 1980 to 2010. Male relative inequalities widened among farmer, fishery and service workers, because the percentage declines were smaller in these occupations. Cerebrovascular disease and cancer were the main causes of the decrease in mortality inequalities among sexes but the incidence of suicide increased among men, thereby increasing sex related inequalities. Conclusions Absolute inequality trends in mortality across occupations decreased in both sexes, while relative inequality trends were heterogeneous in Japan. The main drivers of narrowing and widening mortality inequalities were cerebrovascular

  15. Social inequalities in obesity and overweight in 11 OECD countries.

    PubMed

    Devaux, Marion; Sassi, Franco

    2013-06-01

    Evidence of inequalities in obesity and overweight is available mostly from national studies. This article provides a broad international comparison of inequalities by education level and socio-economic status, in men and women and over time. Data from national health surveys of 11 OECD countries were used. The size of inequalities was assessed on the basis of absolute and relative inequality indexes. A regression-analysis approach was used to assess differences between social groups in trends over time. Of the countries examined, USA and England had the highest rates of obesity and overweight. Large social inequalities were consistently detected in all countries, especially in women. Absolute inequalities were largest in Hungary and Spain with a difference of 11.6 and 10% in obesity rates in men, and 18.3 and 18.9% in women, respectively, across the education spectrum. Relative inequalities were largest in France and Sweden with poorly educated men 3.2 and 2.8 times as likely to be obese as men with the highest education (18 and 17 times for women in Spain and Korea, respectively). Pro-poor inequalities in overweight were observed for men in USA, Canada, Korea, Hungary, Australia and England. Inequalities remained virtually stable during the last 15 years, with only small variations in England, Korea, Italy and France. Large and persistent social inequalities in obesity and overweight by education level and socio-economic status exist in OECD countries. These are consistently larger in women than in men.

  16. Growing gaps: The importance of income and family for educational inequalities in mortality among Swedish men and women 1990-2009.

    PubMed

    Östergren, Olof

    2015-08-01

    Although absolute levels of mortality have decreased among Swedish men and women in recent decades, educational inequalities in mortality have increased, especially among women. The aim of this study is to disentangle the role of income and family type in educational inequalities in mortality in Sweden during 1990-2009, focusing on gender differences. Data on individuals born in Sweden between the ages of 30 and 74 years were collected from total population registries, covering a total of 529,275 deaths and 729 million person-months. Temporary life expectancies (age 30-74 years) by education were calculated using life tables, and rate ratios were estimated with Poisson regression with robust standard errors. Temporary life expectancy improved among all groups except low educated women. Relative educational inequalities in mortality (RRs) increased from 1.79 to 1.98 among men and from 1.78 to 2.10 among women. Variation in family type explained some of the inequalities among men, but not among women, and did not contribute to the trend. Variation in income explained a larger part of the educational inequalities among men compared to women and also explained the increase in educational inequalities in mortality among men and women. Increasing educational inequalities in mortality in Sweden may be attributed to the increase in income inequalities in mortality. © 2015 the Nordic Societies of Public Health.

  17. Persistent Inequality: Changing Educational Attainment in Thirteen Countries. Social Inequality Series.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shavit, Yossi, Ed.; Blossfeld, Hans-Peter, Ed.

    This book encompasses a systematic, comparative study of change in educational stratification in 13 industrialized countries, exploring which societal conditions help reduce existing inequalities in educational opportunity. The contributors show that in most industrialized countries inequalities in educational opportunity among students from…

  18. Time trends in educational inequalities in cancer mortality in Colombia, 1998–2012

    PubMed Central

    Arroyave, Ivan; Pardo, Constanza

    2016-01-01

    Objectives To evaluate trends in premature cancer mortality in Colombia by educational level in three periods: 1998–2002 with low healthcare insurance coverage, 2003–2007 with rapidly increasing coverage and finally 2008–2012 with almost universal coverage (2008–2012). Setting Colombian population-based, national secondary mortality data. Participants We included all (n=188 091) cancer deaths occurring in the age group 20–64 years between 1998 and 2012, excluding only cases with low levels of quality of registration (n=2902, 1.5%). Primary and secondary outcome measures In this descriptive study, we linked mortality data of ages 20–64 years to census data to obtain age-standardised cancer mortality rates by educational level. Using Poisson regression, we modelled premature mortality by educational level estimating rate ratios (RR), relative index of inequality (RII) and the Slope Index of Inequality (SII). Results Relative measures showed increased risks of dying among the lower educated compared to the highest educated; this tendency was stronger in women (RRprimary 1.49; RRsecondary 1.22, both p<0.0001) than in men (RRprimary 1.35; RRsecondary 1.11, both p<0.0001). In absolute terms (SII), cancer caused a difference per 100 000 deaths between the highest and lowest educated of 20.5 in males and 28.5 in females. RII was significantly higher among women and the younger age categories. RII decreased between the first and second periods; afterwards (2008–2012), it increased significantly back to their previous levels. Among women, no significant increases or declines in cancer mortality over time were observed in recent periods in the lowest educated group, whereas strong recent declines were observed in those with secondary education or higher. Conclusions Educational inequalities in cancer mortality in Colombia are increasing in absolute and relative terms, and are concentrated in young age categories. This trend was not curbed by increases in

  19. Educational Inequalities in Obesity among Mexican Women: Time-Trends from 1988 to 2012

    PubMed Central

    Perez Ferrer, Carolina; McMunn, Anne; Rivera Dommarco, Juan A.; Brunner, Eric J.

    2014-01-01

    Background Obesity is one of the leading causes of global morbidity and mortality. Trends in educational inequalities in obesity prevalence among Mexican women have not been analysed systematically to date. Methods Data came from four nationally representative surveys (1988, 1999, 2006, and 2012) of a total of 51 220 non-pregnant women aged 20 to 49. Weight and height were measured during home visits. Education level (higher education, high school, secondary, primary or less) was self-reported. We analysed trends in relative and absolute educational inequalities in obesity prevalence separately for urban and rural areas. Results Nationally, age-standardised obesity prevalence increased from 9.3% to 33.7% over 25 years to 2012. Obesity prevalence was inversely associated with education level in urban areas at all survey waves. In rural areas, obesity prevalence increased markedly but there was no gradient with education level at any survey. The relative index of inequality in urban areas declined over the period (2.87 (95%CI: 1.94, 4.25) in 1988, 1.55 (95%CI: 1.33, 1.80) in 2012, trend p<0.001). Obesity increased 5.92 fold (95%CI: 4.03, 8.70) among urban women with higher education in the period 1988–2012 compared to 3.23 fold (95%CI: 2.88, 3.63) for urban women with primary or no education. The slope index of inequality increased in urban areas from 1988 to 2012. Over 0.5 M cases would be avoided if the obesity prevalence of women with primary or less education was the same as for women with higher education. Conclusions The expected inverse association between education and obesity was observed in urban areas of Mexico. The declining trend in relative educational inequalities in obesity was due to a greater increase in obesity prevalence among higher educated women. In rural areas there was no social gradient in the association between education level and obesity across the four surveys. PMID:24599098

  20. Educational inequalities in obesity among Mexican women: time-trends from 1988 to 2012.

    PubMed

    Perez Ferrer, Carolina; McMunn, Anne; Rivera Dommarco, Juan A; Brunner, Eric J

    2014-01-01

    Obesity is one of the leading causes of global morbidity and mortality. Trends in educational inequalities in obesity prevalence among Mexican women have not been analysed systematically to date. Data came from four nationally representative surveys (1988, 1999, 2006, and 2012) of a total of 51 220 non-pregnant women aged 20 to 49. Weight and height were measured during home visits. Education level (higher education, high school, secondary, primary or less) was self-reported. We analysed trends in relative and absolute educational inequalities in obesity prevalence separately for urban and rural areas. Nationally, age-standardised obesity prevalence increased from 9.3% to 33.7% over 25 years to 2012. Obesity prevalence was inversely associated with education level in urban areas at all survey waves. In rural areas, obesity prevalence increased markedly but there was no gradient with education level at any survey. The relative index of inequality in urban areas declined over the period (2.87 (95%CI: 1.94, 4.25) in 1988, 1.55 (95%CI: 1.33, 1.80) in 2012, trend p<0.001). Obesity increased 5.92 fold (95%CI: 4.03, 8.70) among urban women with higher education in the period 1988-2012 compared to 3.23 fold (95%CI: 2.88, 3.63) for urban women with primary or no education. The slope index of inequality increased in urban areas from 1988 to 2012. Over 0.5 M cases would be avoided if the obesity prevalence of women with primary or less education was the same as for women with higher education. The expected inverse association between education and obesity was observed in urban areas of Mexico. The declining trend in relative educational inequalities in obesity was due to a greater increase in obesity prevalence among higher educated women. In rural areas there was no social gradient in the association between education level and obesity across the four surveys.

  1. Neighbourhood socioeconomic inequalities in incidence of acute myocardial infarction: a cohort study quantifying age- and gender-specific differences in relative and absolute terms.

    PubMed

    Koopman, Carla; van Oeffelen, Aloysia A M; Bots, Michiel L; Engelfriet, Peter M; Verschuren, W M Monique; van Rossem, Lenie; van Dis, Ineke; Capewell, Simon; Vaartjes, Ilonca

    2012-08-07

    Socioeconomic status has a profound effect on the risk of having a first acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Information on socioeconomic inequalities in AMI incidence across age-gender-groups is lacking. Our objective was to examine socioeconomic inequalities in the incidence of AMI considering both relative and absolute measures of risk differences, with a particular focus on age and gender. We identified all patients with a first AMI from 1997 to 2007 through linked hospital discharge and death records covering the Dutch population. Relative risks (RR) of AMI incidence were estimated by mean equivalent household income at neighbourhood-level for strata of age and gender using Poisson regression models. Socioeconomic inequalities were also shown within the stratified age-gender groups by calculating the total number of events attributable to socioeconomic disadvantage. Between 1997 and 2007, 317,564 people had a first AMI. When comparing the most deprived socioeconomic quintile with the most affluent quintile, the overall RR for AMI was 1.34 (95 % confidence interval (CI): 1.32-1.36) in men and 1.44 (95 % CI: 1.42-1.47) in women. The socioeconomic gradient decreased with age. Relative socioeconomic inequalities were most apparent in men under 35 years and in women under 65 years. The largest number of events attributable to socioeconomic inequalities was found in men aged 45-74 years and in women aged 65-84 years. The total proportion of AMIs that was attributable to socioeconomic inequalities in the Dutch population of 1997 to 2007 was 14 % in men and 18 % in women. Neighbourhood socioeconomic inequalities were observed in AMI incidence in the Netherlands, but the magnitude across age-gender groups depended on whether inequality was expressed in relative or absolute terms. Relative socioeconomic inequalities were high in young persons and women, where the absolute burden of AMI was low. Absolute socioeconomic inequalities in AMI were highest in

  2. Changes in mortality inequalities across occupations in Japan: a national register based study of absolute and relative measures, 1980-2010.

    PubMed

    Tanaka, Hirokazu; Toyokawa, Satoshi; Tamiya, Nanako; Takahashi, Hideto; Noguchi, Haruko; Kobayashi, Yasuki

    2017-09-05

    Changes in mortality inequalities across socioeconomic groups have been a substantial public health concern worldwide. We investigated changes in absolute/relative mortality inequalities across occupations, and the contribution of different diseases to inequalities in tandem with the restructuring of the Japanese economy. Using complete Japanese national death registries from 5 year intervals (1980-2010), all cause and cause specific age standardised mortality rates (ASMR per 100 000 people standardised using the Japanese standard population in 1985, aged 30-59 years) across 12 occupations were computed. Absolute and relative inequalities were measured in ASMR differences (RDs) and ASMR ratios (RRs) among occupations in comparison with manufacturing workers (reference). We also estimated the changing contribution of different diseases by calculating the differences in ASMR change between 1995 and 2010 for occupations and reference. All cause ASMRs tended to decrease in both sexes over the three decades except for male managers (increased by 71% points, 1995-2010). RDs across occupations were reduced for both sexes (civil servants 233.5 to -1.9 for men; sales workers 63.3 to 4.5 for women) but RRs increased for some occupations (professional workers 1.38 to 1.70; service workers 2.35 to 3.73) for men and decreased for women from 1980 to 2010. Male relative inequalities widened among farmer, fishery and service workers, because the percentage declines were smaller in these occupations. Cerebrovascular disease and cancer were the main causes of the decrease in mortality inequalities among sexes but the incidence of suicide increased among men, thereby increasing sex related inequalities. Absolute inequality trends in mortality across occupations decreased in both sexes, while relative inequality trends were heterogeneous in Japan. The main drivers of narrowing and widening mortality inequalities were cerebrovascular disease and suicide, respectively. Future

  3. A Special Application of Absolute Value Techniques in Authentic Problem Solving

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stupel, Moshe

    2013-01-01

    There are at least five different equivalent definitions of the absolute value concept. In instances where the task is an equation or inequality with only one or two absolute value expressions, it is a worthy educational experience for learners to solve the task using each one of the definitions. On the other hand, if more than two absolute value…

  4. Neighborhood education inequality and drinking behavior.

    PubMed

    Lê, Félice; Ahern, Jennifer; Galea, Sandro

    2010-11-01

    The neighborhood distribution of education (education inequality) may influence substance use among neighborhood residents. Using data from the New York Social Environment Study (conducted in 2005; n=4000), we examined the associations of neighborhood education inequality (measured using Gini coefficients of education) with alcohol use prevalence and levels of alcohol consumption among alcohol users. Analyses were adjusted for neighborhood education level, income level and income inequality, as well as for individual demographic and socioeconomic characteristics and history of drinking prior to residence in the current neighborhood. Neighborhood social norms about drinking were examined as a possible mediator. In adjusted generalized estimating equation regression models, one-standard-deviation-higher education inequality was associated with 1.18 times higher odds of alcohol use (logistic regression odds ratio=1.18, 95% confidence interval 1.08-1.30) but 0.79 times lower average daily alcohol consumption among alcohol users (Poisson regression relative rate=0.79, 95% confidence interval 0.68-0.92). The results tended to differ in magnitude depending on respondents' individual educational levels. There was no evidence that these associations were mediated by social drinking norms, although norms did vary with education inequality. Our results provide further evidence of a relation between education inequality and drinking behavior while illustrating the importance of considering different drinking outcomes and heterogeneity between neighborhood subgroups. Future research could fruitfully consider other potential mechanisms, such as alcohol availability or the role of stress; research that considers multiple mechanisms and their combined effects may be most informative. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Socioeconomic inequalities in cause specific mortality among older people in France.

    PubMed

    Menvielle, Gwenn; Leclerc, Annette; Chastang, Jean-François; Luce, Danièle

    2010-05-19

    European comparative studies documented a clear North-South divide in socioeconomic inequalities with cancer being the most important contributor to inequalities in total mortality among middle aged men in Latin Europe (France, Spain, Portugal, Italy). The aim of this paper is to investigate educational inequalities in mortality by gender, age and causes of death in France, with a special emphasis on people aged 75 years and more. We used data from a longitudinal population sample that includes 1% of the French population. Risk of death (total and cause specific) in the period 1990-1999 according to education was analysed using Cox regression models by age group (45-59, 60-74, and 75+). Inequalities were quantified using both relative (ratio) and absolute (difference) measures. Relative inequalities decreased with age but were still observed in the oldest age group. Absolute inequalities increased with age. This increase was particularly pronounced for cardiovascular diseases. The contribution of different causes of death to absolute inequalities in total mortality differed between age groups. In particular, the contribution of cancer deaths decreased substantially between the age groups 60-74 years and 75 years and more, both in men and in women. This study suggests that the large contribution of cancer deaths to the excess mortality among low educated people that was observed among middle aged men in Latin Europe is not observed among French people aged 75 years and more. This should be confirmed among other Latin Europe countries.

  6. Educational assortative mating and income inequality in Denmark.

    PubMed

    Breen, Richard; Andersen, Signe Hald

    2012-08-01

    Many writers have expressed a concern that growing educational assortative mating will lead to greater inequality between households in their earnings or income. In this article, we examine the relationship between educational assortative mating and income inequality in Denmark between 1987 and 2006. Denmark is widely known for its low level of income inequality, but the Danish case provides a good test of the relationship between educational assortative mating and inequality because although income inequality increased over the period we consider, educational homogamy declined. Using register data on the exact incomes of the whole population, we find that change in assortative mating increased income inequality but that these changes were driven by changes in the educational distributions of men and women rather than in the propensity for people to choose a partner with a given level of education.

  7. Educational inequality as a predictor of rising back pain prevalence in Austria-sex differences.

    PubMed

    Großschädl, Franziska; Stolz, Erwin; Mayerl, Hannes; Rásky, Éva; Freidl, Wolfgang; Stronegger, Willibald

    2016-04-01

    Back pain (BP) represents a widespread public health problem in Europe. The morbidity depends on several indicators, which must be investigated to discover risk groups. The examination of trends in socioeconomic developments should ensure a better understanding of the complex link between socioeconomic-status and BP. Therefore, the role of social inequalities for BP has been investigated among Austrian subpopulations over a 24-year period. Self-reported data from nationally representative health surveys (1983-2007) were analyzed and adjusted for self-report bias (N=121 486). Absolute changes (ACs) and aetiologic fractions (AF) were calculated to measure trends. To quantify the extent of social inequality, the relative index of inequality was computed based on educational levels. The prevalence of BP nearly doubled between 1983 and 2007. When investigating educational groups, subjects with low educational level were most prevalent. Obese persons generally showed higher rates of BP than non-obese subjects. Continuously rising trends across the different educational groups were more evident in men. The AC was highest in obese men with high education (+32.9%). Education-related inequalities for BP were more evident in men than women. Educational level is an important social indicator for BP. A gradient for low to high educational level in the trends of BP prevalence was clearly identified and stable only among men. We presume that the association 'education' and 'physical workload leading to BP' is more relevant for men than for women. The implementation of effective approaches to BP, in combination with target group-specific interventions focusing on educational status, is recommended. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  8. Economic Inequality, Educational Inequity, and Reduced Career Opportunity: A Self-Perpetuating Cycle?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Torraco, Richard

    2018-01-01

    Economic inequality--the income gap between the wealthy and the poor--is increasing. Educational inequity has also increased with low-income students less likely to complete college than their wealthier counterparts. As the gap widens between the education "haves" and "have-nots," those with inadequate education are faced with…

  9. Neighbourhood socioeconomic inequalities in incidence of acute myocardial infarction: a cohort study quantifying age- and gender-specific differences in relative and absolute terms

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Socioeconomic status has a profound effect on the risk of having a first acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Information on socioeconomic inequalities in AMI incidence across age- gender-groups is lacking. Our objective was to examine socioeconomic inequalities in the incidence of AMI considering both relative and absolute measures of risk differences, with a particular focus on age and gender. Methods We identified all patients with a first AMI from 1997 to 2007 through linked hospital discharge and death records covering the Dutch population. Relative risks (RR) of AMI incidence were estimated by mean equivalent household income at neighbourhood-level for strata of age and gender using Poisson regression models. Socioeconomic inequalities were also shown within the stratified age-gender groups by calculating the total number of events attributable to socioeconomic disadvantage. Results Between 1997 and 2007, 317,564 people had a first AMI. When comparing the most deprived socioeconomic quintile with the most affluent quintile, the overall RR for AMI was 1.34 (95 % confidence interval (CI): 1.32 – 1.36) in men and 1.44 (95 % CI: 1.42 – 1.47) in women. The socioeconomic gradient decreased with age. Relative socioeconomic inequalities were most apparent in men under 35 years and in women under 65 years. The largest number of events attributable to socioeconomic inequalities was found in men aged 45–74 years and in women aged 65–84 years. The total proportion of AMIs that was attributable to socioeconomic inequalities in the Dutch population of 1997 to 2007 was 14 % in men and 18 % in women. Conclusions Neighbourhood socioeconomic inequalities were observed in AMI incidence in the Netherlands, but the magnitude across age-gender groups depended on whether inequality was expressed in relative or absolute terms. Relative socioeconomic inequalities were high in young persons and women, where the absolute burden of AMI was low. Absolute

  10. Socioeconomic inequalities in suicide in Europe: the widening gap.

    PubMed

    Lorant, Vincent; de Gelder, Rianne; Kapadia, Dharmi; Borrell, Carme; Kalediene, Ramune; Kovács, Katalin; Leinsalu, Mall; Martikainen, Pekka; Menvielle, Gwenn; Regidor, Enrique; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica; Wojtyniak, Bogdan; Strand, Bjørn Heine; Bopp, Matthias; Mackenbach, Johan P

    2018-06-01

    Suicide has been decreasing over the past decade. However, we do not know whether socioeconomic inequality in suicide has been decreasing as well.AimsWe assessed recent trends in socioeconomic inequalities in suicide in 15 European populations. The DEMETRIQ study collected and harmonised register-based data on suicide mortality follow-up of population censuses, from 1991 and 2001, in European populations aged 35-79. Absolute and relative inequalities of suicide according to education were computed on more than 300 million person-years. In the 1990s, people in the lowest educational group had 1.82 times more suicides than those in the highest group. In the 2000s, this ratio increased to 2.12. Among men, absolute and relative inequalities were substantial in both periods and generally did not decrease over time, whereas among women inequalities were absent in the first period and emerged in the second. The World Health Organization (WHO) plan for 'Fair opportunity of mental wellbeing' is not likely to be met.Declaration of interestNone.

  11. Inequalities in oral impacts and welfare regimes: analysis of 21 European countries.

    PubMed

    Guarnizo-Herreño, Carol C; Watt, Richard G; Pikhart, Hynek; Sheiham, Aubrey; Tsakos, Georgios

    2014-12-01

    Very few studies have analysed the relationship between political factors and oral health inequalities, and only one study has compared the magnitude of inequalities in oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) across welfare state regimes. This study aimed to compare socioeconomic inequalities in oral impacts on daily life among 21 European countries with different welfare state regimes (Scandinavian, Anglo-Saxon, Bismarckian, Southern, and Eastern). We analysed data from the Eurobarometer 72.3, a survey carried out in 2009 among adults in European countries. Inequalities in oral impacts by education, occupational social class and subjective social status (SSS) were estimated by means of age-standardized prevalence rates, odds ratios (ORs), the relative index of inequality (RII) and the slope index of inequality (SII). Educational inequalities in the form of social gradients were observed in all welfare regimes. The Scandinavian and Southern welfare regimes also showed gradients for all SEP measures. There were not significant differences in the magnitude of relative inequalities (RII) across welfare state regimes. Absolute educational inequalities were largest in the Anglo-Saxon welfare regime (SII = 17.57; 95% CI: 7.80-27.33) and smallest in the Bismarckian (SII = 3.32; 95% CI: -2.18 to 8.83). A significant difference in the magnitude of inequalities across welfare regimes was found for absolute educational inequalities but not for relative inequalities. Welfare state regimes may influence the relationship between knowledge-related resources and oral impacts on daily life. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  12. 'Only Fathers Smoking' Contributes the Most to Socioeconomic Inequalities: Changes in Socioeconomic Inequalities in Infants' Exposure to Second Hand Smoke over Time in Japan.

    PubMed

    Saito, Junko; Tabuchi, Takahiro; Shibanuma, Akira; Yasuoka, Junko; Nakamura, Masakazu; Jimba, Masamine

    2015-01-01

    Exposure to second hand smoke (SHS) is one of the major causes of premature death and disease among children. While socioeconomic inequalities exist for adult smoking, such evidence is limited for SHS exposure in children. Thus, this study examined changes over time in socioeconomic inequalities in infants' SHS exposure in Japan. This is a repeated cross-sectional study of 41,833 infants born in 2001 and 32,120 infants born in 2010 in Japan from nationally representative surveys using questionnaires. The prevalence of infants' SHS exposure was determined and related to household income and parental education level. The magnitudes of income and educational inequalities in infants' SHS exposure were estimated in 2001 and 2010 using both absolute and relative inequality indices. The prevalence of SHS exposure in infants declined from 2001 to 2010. The relative index of inequality increased from 0.85 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 0.89) to 1.47 (95% CI, 1.37 to 1.56) based on income and from 1.22 (95% CI, 1.17 to 1.26) to 2.09 (95% CI, 2.00 to 2.17) based on education. In contrast, the slope index of inequality decreased from 30.9 (95% CI, 29.3 to 32.6) to 20.1 (95% CI, 18.7 to 21.5) based on income and from 44.6 (95% CI, 43.1 to 46.2) to 28.7 (95% CI, 27.3 to 30.0) based on education. Having only a father who smoked indoors was a major contributor to absolute income inequality in infants' SHS exposure in 2010, which increased in importance from 45.1% in 2001 to 67.0% in 2010. The socioeconomic inequalities in infants' second hand smoke exposure increased in relative terms but decreased in absolute terms from 2001 to 2010. Further efforts are needed to encourage parents to quit smoking and protect infants from second hand smoke exposure, especially in low socioeconomic households that include non-smoking mothers.

  13. Education Expansion, Educational Inequality, and Income Inequality: Evidence from Taiwan, 1976-2003

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lin, Chun-Hung A.

    2007-01-01

    The expansion of higher education in Taiwan starting from the late 1980s has successfully raised the average level of education. Using the concept of the education Gini, we find that the educational inequality declined as average schooling rose during the period of 1976-2003. The impacts of a rising average schooling and a declining educational…

  14. ‘Only Fathers Smoking’ Contributes the Most to Socioeconomic Inequalities: Changes in Socioeconomic Inequalities in Infants’ Exposure to Second Hand Smoke over Time in Japan

    PubMed Central

    Saito, Junko; Tabuchi, Takahiro; Shibanuma, Akira; Yasuoka, Junko; Nakamura, Masakazu; Jimba, Masamine

    2015-01-01

    Background Exposure to second hand smoke (SHS) is one of the major causes of premature death and disease among children. While socioeconomic inequalities exist for adult smoking, such evidence is limited for SHS exposure in children. Thus, this study examined changes over time in socioeconomic inequalities in infants’ SHS exposure in Japan. Methods This is a repeated cross-sectional study of 41,833 infants born in 2001 and 32,120 infants born in 2010 in Japan from nationally representative surveys using questionnaires. The prevalence of infants’ SHS exposure was determined and related to household income and parental education level. The magnitudes of income and educational inequalities in infants’ SHS exposure were estimated in 2001 and 2010 using both absolute and relative inequality indices. Results The prevalence of SHS exposure in infants declined from 2001 to 2010. The relative index of inequality increased from 0.85 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 0.89) to 1.47 (95% CI, 1.37 to 1.56) based on income and from 1.22 (95% CI, 1.17 to 1.26) to 2.09 (95% CI, 2.00 to 2.17) based on education. In contrast, the slope index of inequality decreased from 30.9 (95% CI, 29.3 to 32.6) to 20.1 (95% CI, 18.7 to 21.5) based on income and from 44.6 (95% CI, 43.1 to 46.2) to 28.7 (95% CI, 27.3 to 30.0) based on education. Having only a father who smoked indoors was a major contributor to absolute income inequality in infants’ SHS exposure in 2010, which increased in importance from 45.1% in 2001 to 67.0% in 2010. Conclusions The socioeconomic inequalities in infants’ second hand smoke exposure increased in relative terms but decreased in absolute terms from 2001 to 2010. Further efforts are needed to encourage parents to quit smoking and protect infants from second hand smoke exposure, especially in low socioeconomic households that include non-smoking mothers. PMID:26431400

  15. [Educational inequalities in mortality and survival of women and men in the Americas, 1990-2010].

    PubMed

    Haeberer, Mariana; Noguer, Isabel; Mújica, Oscar J

    2015-08-01

    Analyze magnitude and trends in educational inequality in mortality and survival of women and men in countries of the Americas. Gap and gradient metrics were used to calculate inequality between countries in adult mortality, average age of death, life expectancy, and healthy life expectancy, according to educational level in men and women for 1990 and 2010. Between 1990 and 2010, the average number of years of education increased from 8 to 10 with no difference between sexes. Adult mortality (15-59 years) did not change: 1.9 per 1 000 women and 3.7 per 1 000 men. The slope index of inequality (SII) increased from -1.0 to -2.0 per 1 000 women and from -1.2 to -4.4 per 1 000 men. Life expectancy increased from 75.6 to 78.7 years in women and from 68.9 to 72.4 in men; absolute inequality decreased from 7.8 to 7.2 years in women and increased from 7.2 to 9.2 years in men. Healthy life expectancy increased from 63.7 to 65.9 years in women and from 59.5 to 62.5 years in men; the SII declined from 6.9 to 5.8 years in women and increased from 6.9 to 7.8 years in men. In the countries of the Americas, men are at greater risk of dying, die earlier, and live fewer disease- and disability-free years than women; educational level is a determinant of mortality and survival in both sexes, and educational inequalities are more pronounced and increasing among men, and are disproportionately concentrated in the most socially disadvantaged populations.

  16. Socioeconomic inequality in neonatal mortality in countries of low and middle income: a multicountry analysis.

    PubMed

    McKinnon, Britt; Harper, Sam; Kaufman, Jay S; Bergevin, Yves

    2014-03-01

    Neonatal mortality rates (NMRs) in countries of low and middle income have been only slowly decreasing; coverage of essential maternal and newborn health services needs to increase, particularly for disadvantaged populations. Our aim was to produce comparable estimates of changes in socioeconomic inequalities in NMR in the past two decades across these countries. We used data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) for countries in which a survey was done in 2008 or later and one about 10 years previously. We measured absolute inequalities with the slope index of inequality and relative inequalities with the relative index of inequality. We used an asset-based wealth index and maternal education as measures of socioeconomic position and summarised inequality estimates for all included countries with random-effects meta-analysis. 24 low-income and middle-income countries were eligible for inclusion. In most countries, absolute and relative wealth-related and educational inequalities in NMR decreased between survey 1 and survey 2. In five countries (Cameroon, Nigeria, Malawi, Mozambique, and Uganda), the difference in NMR between the top and bottom of the wealth distribution was reduced by more than two neonatal deaths per 1000 livebirths per year. By contrast, wealth-related inequality increased by more than 1·5 neonatal deaths per 1000 livebirths per year in Ethiopia and Cambodia. Patterns of change in absolute and relative educational inequalities in NMR were similar to those of wealth-related NMR inequalities, although the size of educational inequalities tended to be slightly larger. Socioeconomic inequality in NMR seems to have decreased in the past two decades in most countries of low and middle income. However, a substantial survival advantage remains for babies born into wealthier households with a high educational level, which should be considered in global efforts to further reduce NMR. Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Copyright © 2014 Mc

  17. Trends in Educational Inequality in Different Eras (1940-2010)--A Re-Examination of Opportunity Inequalities in Urban-Rural Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chunling, Li

    2015-01-01

    Based on national sampling survey data from 2006, 2008, and 2011, the author uses the Mare educational transition model to systematically examine changing trends in inequalities in urban-rural educational opportunities at all educational stages from 1940 to 2010. Through a comparative analysis of five birth year groups, inequalities in urban-rural…

  18. Education's Effect on Income Inequality: An Economic Globalisation Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wells, Ryan

    2006-01-01

    Utilising a globalisation framework this study contributes to discussions concerning inequality, education, and development by re-examining the effects of educational and economic variables on income inequality. This research shows that the effects of education on income inequality are affected by the level of economic freedom in a country, and…

  19. Contradictions of Identity: Education and the Problem of Racial Absolutism.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McCarthy, Cameron

    1995-01-01

    Critiques tendencies toward dogmatism and essentialism in current educational theories of racial inequality. Argues that different gender, class, and ethnic interests intersect with racial coordination and affiliation, and that to reduce racial antagonism or ameliorate educational inequities educators must consider the powerful role of nuance,…

  20. A new multidimensional population health indicator for policy makers: absolute level, inequality and spatial clustering - an empirical application using global sub-national infant mortality data.

    PubMed

    Sartorius, Benn K D; Sartorius, Kurt

    2014-11-01

    The need for a multidimensional measure of population health that accounts for its distribution remains a central problem to guide the allocation of limited resources. Absolute proxy measures, like the infant mortality rate (IMR), are limited because they ignore inequality and spatial clustering. We propose a novel, three-part, multidimensional mortality indicator that can be used as the first step to differentiate interventions in a region or country. The three-part indicator (MortalityABC index) combines absolute mortality rate, the Theil Index to calculate mortality inequality and the Getis-Ord G statistic to determine the degree of spatial clustering. The analysis utilises global sub-national IMR data to empirically illustrate the proposed indicator. The three-part indicator is mapped globally to display regional/country variation and further highlight its potential application. Developing countries (e.g. in sub-Saharan Africa) display high levels of absolute mortality as well as variable mortality inequality with evidence of spatial clustering within certain sub-national units ("hotspots"). Although greater inequality is observed outside developed regions, high mortality inequality and spatial clustering are common in both developed and developing countries. Significant positive correlation was observed between the degree of spatial clustering and absolute mortality. The proposed multidimensional indicator should prove useful for spatial allocation of healthcare resources within a country, because it can prompt a wide range of policy options and prioritise high-risk areas. The new indicator demonstrates the inadequacy of IMR as a single measure of population health, and it can also be adapted to lower administrative levels within a country and other population health measures.

  1. Health inequalities in the Netherlands: trends in quality-adjusted life expectancy (QALE) by educational level.

    PubMed

    Gheorghe, Maria; Wubulihasimu, Parida; Peters, Frederik; Nusselder, Wilma; Van Baal, Pieter H M

    2016-10-01

    Quality-adjusted life expectancy (QALE) has been proposed as a summary measure of population health because it encompasses multiple health domains as well as length of life. However, trends in QALE by education or other socio-economic measure have not yet been reported. This study investigates changes in QALE stratified by educational level for the Dutch population in the period 2001-2011. Using data from multiple sources, we estimated mortality rates and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) as functions of age, gender, calendar year and educational level. Subsequently, predictions from these regressions were combined for calculating QALE at ages 25 and 65. QALE changes were decomposed into effects of mortality and HRQoL. In 2001-2011, QALE increased for men and women at all educational levels, the largest increases being for highly educated resulting in a widening gap by education. In 2001, at age 25, the absolute QALE difference between the low and the highly educated was 7.4 healthy years (36.7 vs. 44.1) for men and 6.3 healthy years (39.5 vs. 45.8) for women. By 2011, the QALE difference increased to 8.1 healthy years (38.8 vs. 46.9) for men and to 7.1 healthy years (41.3 vs. 48.4) for women. Similar results were observed at age 65. Although the gap was largely attributable to widening inequalities in mortality, widening inequalities in HRQoL were also substantial. In the Netherlands, population health as measured by QALE has improved, but QALE inequalities have widened more than inequalities in life expectancy alone. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  2. Higher Education and Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brown, Roger

    2018-01-01

    After climate change, rising economic inequality is the greatest challenge facing the advanced Western societies. Higher education has traditionally been seen as a means to greater equality through its role in promoting social mobility. But with increased marketisation higher education now not only reflects the forces making for greater inequality…

  3. Contribution of different causes of death to socioeconomic mortality inequality in Korean children aged 1-9: findings from a national mortality follow-up study.

    PubMed

    Jung-Choi, K; Khang, Y H

    2011-02-01

    To determine the contribution of different causes of death to absolute socioeconomic inequalities in mortality for the whole population of children of South Korea aged 1-4 years and 5-9 years. A cohort study based on the national birth and death registers of Korea was performed for 3,724,347 children born in 1995-2000 and 657,209 children born in 1995 to analyse mortality among children aged 1-4 and 5-9 years old, respectively. Adjusted mortality, risk difference (RD), slope index of inequality (SII), RR and relative index of inequality were calculated. The contributions of different causes of death to absolute mortality inequalities were calculated as percentages based on RD and SII. Injuries other than from transport accidents contributed the most to total SIIs for male deaths at ages 1-4 (30.0% for father's education). The second largest contribution was from transport accident injuries (19.6% for father's education). For male deaths at ages 5-9, transport accident injuries and other injuries also accounted for most of the educational and occupational differentials in absolute mortality (63.5-90.5%). Patterns in cause-specific contribution to total inequalities in mortality among girls were generally similar to those among boys. The major contributing causes to absolute socioeconomic inequality in all-cause mortality for children aged 1-9 were external. To reduce the absolute magnitude of socioeconomic inequalities in childhood mortality, policy efforts should be directed towards injury prevention and treatment in South Korea.

  4. Relativistic Absolutism in Moral Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vogt, W. Paul

    1982-01-01

    Discusses Emile Durkheim's "Moral Education: A Study in the Theory and Application of the Sociology of Education," which holds that morally healthy societies may vary in culture and organization but must possess absolute rules of moral behavior. Compares this moral theory with current theory and practice of American educators. (MJL)

  5. Evolution of educational inequalities in site-specific cancer mortality among Belgian men between the 1990s and 2000s using a "fundamental cause" perspective.

    PubMed

    Vanthomme, Katrien; Vandenheede, Hadewijch; Hagedoorn, Paulien; Gadeyne, Sylvie

    2017-07-05

    According to the "fundamental cause" theory, emerging knowledge on health-enhancing behaviours and technologies results in health disparities. This study aims to assess (trends in) educational inequalities in site-specific cancer mortality in Belgian men in the 1990s and the 2000s using this framework. Data were derived from record linkage between the Belgian censuses of 1991 and 2001 and register data on mortality. The study population comprised all Belgian men aged 50-79 years during follow-up. Both absolute and relative inequality measures have been calculated. Despite an overall downward trend in cancer mortality, educational differences are observed for the majority of cancer sites in the 2000s. Generally, inequalities are largest for mortality from preventable cancers. Trends over time in inequalities are rather stable compared with the 1990s. Educational differences in site-specific cancer mortality persist in the 2000s in Belgium, mainly for cancers related to behavioural change and medical interventions. Policy efforts focussing on behavioural change and healthcare utilization remain crucial in order to tackle these increasing inequalities.

  6. Time trends in adult chronic disease inequalities by education in Brazil: 1998-2013.

    PubMed

    Beltrán-Sánchez, Hiram; Andrade, Flavia C D

    2016-11-17

    Socioeconomic differences in health in Brazil are largely driven by differences in educational attainment. In this paper, we assess whether educational gradients in chronic disease prevalence have narrowed in Brazil from 1998 to 2013, a period of a booming economy accompanied by major investments in public health in the country. Individual-level data came from the 1998, 2003 and 2008 Brazilian National Household Survey and the 2013 National Health Survey. We first evaluate age-standardized prevalence rates of chronic disease by education and second, we predict the estimated prevalence rate between those in low vs. high education to assess if relative changes in chronic disease have narrowed over time. Third, we estimate the slope index of inequality (SII) that evaluates the absolute change in the predicted prevalence of a disease between those in low vs. high education. Finally, we tested for statistically significant time trends in adult chronic disease inequalities by education. Prevalence of diabetes and hypertension have increased over the period, whereas the prevalence of heart disease decreased. Brazilian adults with no education had higher levels of diabetes, hypertension and heart disease than those with some college or more. Adjusted prevalence for hypertension and heart disease indicate some progress in reducing educational disparities over time. However, for diabetes, adjusted results show a continuously increasing educational disparity from 1998 to 2013. By 2013, individuals with no education had about two times higher diabetes prevalence than those with higher education with larger disparity among women. Results confirm findings from previous work that educational inequalities in health are large in Brazil but also provide evidence suggesting some improvement in narrowing these differentials in recent times. Recent policies aiming at reducing the prevalence of obesity, smoking and alcohol consumption, and increasing physical activity and consumption of

  7. American Higher Education and Income Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hill, Catharine B.

    2016-01-01

    This paper demonstrates that increasing income inequality can contribute to the trends we see in American higher education, particularly in the selective, private nonprofit and public sectors. Given these institutions' selective admissions and commitment to socioeconomic diversity, the paper demonstrates how increasing income inequality leads to…

  8. Declaring Bankruptcy on Educational Inequity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bass, Lisa; Gerstl-Pepin, Cynthia

    2011-01-01

    The authors consider Ladson-Billings' (2006) charge to reframe the way the "achievement gap" is viewed, and put forth the metaphor of "bankruptcy" as a way to acknowledge the educational debt and educational inequity and move towards debt forgiveness in public education. Specifically, the bankruptcy metaphor is used to examine…

  9. The effect of poverty, social inequity, and maternal education on infant mortality in Nicaragua, 1988-1993.

    PubMed Central

    Peña, R; Wall, S; Persson, L A

    2000-01-01

    OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the effect of poverty and social inequity on infant mortality risks in Nicaragua from 1988 to 1993 and the preventive role of maternal education. METHODS: A cohort analysis of infant survival, based on reproductive histories of a representative sample of 10,867 women aged 15 to 49 years in León, Nicaragua, was conducted. A total of 7073 infants were studied; 342 deaths occurred during 6394 infant-years of follow-up. Outcome measures were infant mortality rate (IMR) and relative mortality risks for different groups. RESULTS: IMR was 50 per 1000 live births. Poverty, expressed as unsatisfied basic needs (UBN) of the household, increased the risk of infant death (adjusted relative risk [RR] = 1.49; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.15, 1.92). Social inequity, expressed as the contrast between the household UBN and the predominant UBN of the neighborhood, further increased the risk (adjusted RR = 1.74; 95% CI = 1.12, 2.71). A protective effect of the mother's educational level was seen only in poor households. CONCLUSIONS: Apart from absolute level of poverty, social inequity may be an independent risk factor for infant mortality in a low-income country. In poor households, female education may contribute to preventing infant mortality. PMID:10630139

  10. Inefficient Self-Selection into Education and Wage Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ordine, Patrizia; Rose, Giuseppe

    2011-01-01

    This paper proposes a theoretical framework where "within graduates" wage inequality is related to overeducation/educational mismatch in the labor market. We show that wage inequality may arise because of inefficient self-selection into education in the presence of ability-complementary technological progress and asymmetric information…

  11. Educational Systems and Rising Inequality: Eastern Germany after Unification

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    von Below, Susanne; Powell, Justin J. W.; Roberts, Lance W.

    2013-01-01

    Educational systems considerably influence educational opportunities and the resulting social inequalities. Contrasting institutional regulations of both structures and contents, the authors present a typology of educational system types in Germany to analyze their effects on social inequality in eastern Germany after unification. After 1990, the…

  12. Neonatal Mortality and Inequalities in Bangladesh: Differential Progress and Sub-national Developments.

    PubMed

    Minnery, Mark; Firth, Sonja; Hodge, Andrew; Jimenez-Soto, Eliana

    2015-09-01

    A rapid reduction in under-five mortality has put Bangladesh on-track to reach Millennium Development Goal 4. Little research, however, has been conducted into neonatal reductions and sub-national rates in the country, with considerable disparities potentially masked by national reductions. The aim of this paper is to estimate national and sub-national rates of neonatal mortality to compute relative and absolute inequalities between sub-national groups and draw comparisons with rates of under-five mortality. Mortality rates for under-five children and neonates were estimated directly for 1980-1981 to 2010-2011 using data from six waves of the Demographic and Health Survey. Rates were stratified by levels of rural/urban location, household wealth and maternal education. Absolute and relative inequalities within these groups were measured by rate differences and ratios, and where possible, slope and relative indices of inequality. National mortality was shown to have decreased dramatically although at differential rates for under-fives and neonates. Across all equity markers, a general pattern of declining absolute but constant relative inequalities was found. For mortality rates stratified by education and wealth mixed evidence suggests that relative inequalities may have also fallen. Although disparities remain, Bangladesh has achieved a rare combination of substantive reductions in mortality levels without increases in relative inequalities. A coalescence of substantial increases in coverage and equitable distribution of key child and neonatal interventions with widespread health sectoral and policy changes over the last 30 years may in part explain this exceptional pattern.

  13. Racial Inequity in Special Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Losen, Daniel J., Ed.; Orfield, Gary, Ed.

    This collection of papers discusses issues related to the overidentification of minority students in special education. After a "Foreword" (Senator James M. Jeffords) and an introduction, "Racial Inequality in Special Education" (Daniel J. Losen and Gary Orfield), 11 chapters include: (1) "Community and School Predictors…

  14. Diversity, Inequality, and a Post-Structural Politics for Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Youdell, Deborah

    2006-01-01

    This paper considers the contribution to understanding educational inequalities offered by post-structural theories of power and the subject. The paper locates this consideration in the context of the ongoing endeavour in education studies to make sense of, and identify ways of interrupting, abiding educational exclusions and inequalities. The…

  15. Expansion, Differentiation, and the Persistence of Social Class Inequalities in British Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Boliver, Vikki

    2011-01-01

    Conventional political wisdom has it that educational expansion helps to reduce socioeconomic inequalities of access to education by increasing equality of educational opportunity. The counterarguments of Maximally Maintained Inequality (MMI) and Effectively Maintained Inequality (EMI), in contrast, contend that educational inequalities tend to…

  16. Income Inequality and the Education Divide.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Welch, Mary A., Ed.

    1998-01-01

    The economics of the decision to go to college or obtain technical training is discussed in this booklet. To stay competitive in the job market requires constant educational updating. The following questions are discussed: (1) how income inequality is measured; (2) how income is distributed in the United States; (3) why income inequality is…

  17. Racial and Regional Inequalities in School Resources Relative to Their Educational Outcomes.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McPartland, James M.; Sprehe, J. Timothy

    This paper uses the data from the 1966 Educational Opportunities Survey (EOS) to investigate regional and racial inequalities in education by applying a definition of inequalities that incorporates both school inputs and educational outcomes. Inequalities in school inputs are weighted by their importance for educational outputs, in order to…

  18. Educational Inequality in the United States: Methodology and Historical Estimation of Education Gini Coefficients

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bennett, Daniel L.

    2011-01-01

    This paper estimates historical measures of equality in the distribution of education in the United States by age group and sex. Using educational attainment data for the population, the EduGini measure indicates that educational inequality in the U.S. declined significantly between 1950 and 2009. Reductions in educational inequality were more…

  19. Exploring trends in and determinants of educational inequalities in self-rated health.

    PubMed

    Granström, Fredrik; Molarius, Anu; Garvin, Peter; Elo, Sirkka; Feldman, Inna; Kristenson, Margareta

    2015-11-01

    Educational inequalities in self-rated health (SRH) in European welfare countries are documented, but recent trends in these inequalities are less well understood. We examined educational inequalities in SRH in different age groups, and the contribution of selected material, behavioural and psychosocial determinants from 2000 to 2008. Data were derived from cross-sectional surveys conducted in 2000, 2004 and 2008 including 37,478, 34,876 and 32,982 respondents, respectively, aged 25-75 in mid-Sweden. Inequalities were analysed by age-standardized and age-stratified rate ratios of poor SRH and age-standardized prevalence of determinants, and contribution of determinants by age-adjusted logistic regression. Relative educational inequalities in SRH increased among women from 2000 (rate ratio (RR) 1.70, 95% CI 1.55-1.85) to 2008 (RR 2.07, 95% CI 1.90-2.26), but were unchanged among men (RR 1.91-2.01). The increase among women was mainly due to growing inequalities in the age group 25-34 years. In 2008, significant age differences emerged with larger inequalities in the youngest compared with the oldest age group in both genders. All determinants were more prevalent in low educational groups; the most prominent were lack of a financial buffer, smoking and low optimism. Educational differences were unchanged over the years for most determinants. In all three surveys, examined determinants together explained a substantial part of the educational inequalities in SRH. Increased relative educational health inequalities among women, and persisting inequalities among men, were paralleled by unchanged, large differences in material/structural, behavioural and psychosocial factors. Interventions to reduce these inequalities need to focus on early mid-life. © 2015 the Nordic Societies of Public Health.

  20. Institutional Educational Technology Policy and Strategy Documents: An Inequality Gaze

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Czerniewicz, Laura; Rother, Kyle

    2018-01-01

    Issues of inequality in higher education have received considerable attention in recent decades, but the intersection of inequality and educational technology at an institutional level has received little attention. This study aims to provide a perspective on institutional educational technology policy informed by current understandings of…

  1. Location matters: trends in inequalities in child mortality in Indonesia. Evidence from repeated cross-sectional surveys.

    PubMed

    Hodge, Andrew; Firth, Sonja; Marthias, Tiara; Jimenez-Soto, Eliana

    2014-01-01

    Considerable improvements in life expectancy and other human development indicators in Indonesia are thought to mask considerable disparities between populations in the country. We examine the existence and extent of these disparities by measuring trends and inequalities in the under-five mortality rate and neonatal mortality rate across wealth, education and geography. Using data from seven waves of the Indonesian Demographic and Health Surveys, direct estimates of under-five and neonatal mortality rates were generated for 1980-2011. Absolute and relative inequalities were measured by rate differences and ratios, and where possible, slope and relative indices of inequality. Disparities were assessed by levels of rural/urban location, island groups, maternal education and household wealth. Declines in national rates of under-five and neonatal mortality have accorded with reductions of absolute inequalities in clusters stratified by wealth, maternal education and rural/urban location. Across these groups, relative inequalities have generally stabilised, with possible increases with respect to mortality across wealth subpopulations. Both relative and absolute inequalities in rates of under-five and neonatal mortality stratified by island divisions have widened. Indonesia has made considerable gains in reducing under-five and neonatal mortality at a national level, with the largest reductions happening before the Asian financial crisis (1997-98) and decentralisation (2000). Hasty implementation of decentralisation reforms may have contributed to a slowdown in mortality rate reduction thereafter. Widening inequities between the most developed provinces of Java-Bali and those of other island groupings should be of particular concern for a country embarking on an ambitious plan for universal health coverage by 2019. A focus on addressing the key supply side barriers to accessing health care and on the social determinants of health in remote and disadvantaged regions will

  2. Racial Inequality in Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Troyna, Barry, Ed.

    Contributors to this book are united in their commitment to combating racial inequality in education and in outlining the extent and manner in which racism and its associated practices have become embedded in the institutional and sociopolitical structures of the United Kingdom. The following chapters are included: (1) "A Conceptual Overview…

  3. Explaining educational inequalities in adolescent life satisfaction: do health behaviour and gender matter?

    PubMed

    Moor, Irene; Lampert, Thomas; Rathmann, Katharina; Kuntz, Benjamin; Kolip, Petra; Spallek, Jacob; Richter, Matthias

    2014-04-01

    There is little evidence on the explanation of health inequalities based on a gender sensitive perspective. The aim was to investigate to what extent health behaviours mediate the association between educational inequalities and life satisfaction of boys and girls. Data were derived from the German part of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study 2010 (n = 5,005). Logistic regression models were conducted to investigate educational inequalities in life satisfaction among 11- to 15-year-old students and the relative impact of health behaviour in explaining these inequalities. Educational inequalities in life satisfaction were more pronounced in boys than in girls from lower educational tracks (OR 2.82, 95 % CI 1.97-4.05 and OR 2.30, 95 % CI 1.68-3.14). For adolescents belonging to the lowest educational track, behavioural factors contributed to 18 % (boys) and 39 % (girls) in the explanation of educational inequalities in life satisfaction. The relationship between educational track and life satisfaction is substantially mediated by health-related behaviours. To tackle inequalities in adolescent health, behavioural factors should be targeted at adolescents from lower educational tracks, with special focus on gender differences.

  4. Trends in inequalities in premature mortality: a study of 3.2 million deaths in 13 European countries.

    PubMed

    Mackenbach, Johan P; Kulhánová, Ivana; Menvielle, Gwenn; Bopp, Matthias; Borrell, Carme; Costa, Giuseppe; Deboosere, Patrick; Esnaola, Santiago; Kalediene, Ramune; Kovacs, Katalin; Leinsalu, Mall; Martikainen, Pekka; Regidor, Enrique; Rodriguez-Sanz, Maica; Strand, Bjørn Heine; Hoffmann, Rasmus; Eikemo, Terje A; Östergren, Olof; Lundberg, Olle

    2015-03-01

    Over the last decades of the 20th century, a widening of the gap in death rates between upper and lower socioeconomic groups has been reported for many European countries. For most countries, it is unknown whether this widening has continued into the first decade of the 21st century. We collected and harmonised data on mortality by educational level among men and women aged 30-74 years in all countries with available data: Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, England and Wales, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, Hungary, Lithuania and Estonia. Relative inequalities in premature mortality increased in most populations in the North, West and East of Europe, but not in the South. This was mostly due to smaller proportional reductions in mortality among the lower than the higher educated, but in the case of Lithuania and Estonia, mortality rose among the lower and declined among the higher educated. Mortality among the lower educated rose in many countries for conditions linked to smoking (lung cancer, women only) and excessive alcohol consumption (liver cirrhosis and external causes). In absolute terms, however, reductions in premature mortality were larger among the lower educated in many countries, mainly due to larger absolute reductions in mortality from cardiovascular disease and cancer (men only). Despite rising levels of education, population-attributable fractions of lower education for mortality rose in many countries. Relative inequalities in premature mortality have continued to rise in most European countries, and since the 1990s, the contrast between the South (with smaller inequalities) and the East (with larger inequalities) has become stronger. While the population impact of these inequalities has further increased, there are also some encouraging signs of larger absolute reductions in mortality among the lower educated in many countries. Reducing inequalities in mortality critically depends upon speeding up mortality declines among the lower

  5. The Importance of History in the Racial Inequality and Racial Inequity in Education: New Orleans as a Case Example

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Parsons, Eileen Carlton; Turner, Kea

    2014-01-01

    Racial equality and racial equity in U.S. education has been elusive although decades of education reform have them as goals. Current discourse advocate colorblind and post-racial solutions to racial inequality and racial inequity in education; these solutions implicate presentism, a view that exclusively circumscribes the existence of present-day…

  6. Income inequality in the developing world.

    PubMed

    Ravallion, Martin

    2014-05-23

    Should income inequality be of concern in developing countries? New data reveal less income inequality in the developing world than 30 years ago. However, this is due to falling inequality between countries. Average inequality within developing countries has been slowly rising, though staying fairly flat since 2000. As a rule, higher rates of growth in average incomes have not put upward pressure on inequality within countries. Growth has generally helped reduce the incidence of absolute poverty, but less so in more unequal countries. High inequality also threatens to stall future progress against poverty by attenuating growth prospects. Perceptions of rising absolute gaps in living standards between the rich and the poor in growing economies are also consistent with the evidence. Copyright © 2014, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  7. Secondary School Tracking and Educational Inequality: Compensation, Reinforcement, or Neutrality?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gamoran, Adam; Mare, Robert D.

    1989-01-01

    Using data from the High School and Beyond Survey, the author examines the effects of secondary educational academic tracking on educational stratification relative to racial, sexual, and socioeconomic inequality. Finds that current tracking practices produce less inequality among Blacks and females. Also finds that noncollege programs are not…

  8. Income-related inequalities in inadequate dentition over time in Australia, Brazil and USA adults.

    PubMed

    Peres, Marco A; Luzzi, Liana; Peres, Karen G; Sabbah, Wael; Antunes, Jose L; Do, Loc G

    2015-06-01

    To assess changes over time of the absolute and relative household income-related inequalities in inadequate dentition (ID) among Australians, Brazilians and USA adults. This study used nationwide oral health survey data from Australia (n = 1200 in 1999; n = 2729 in 2005), Brazil (n = 13 431 in 2003; n = 9779 in 2010) and USA (n = 2542 in 1999; n = 1596 in 2005). Absolute income inequalities were calculated using Absolute Concentration Index (ACI) and Slope Index of Inequality (SII), while relative inequalities were calculated using Relative Concentration Index (RCI) and Relative Index of Inequality (RII). Prevalence of ID in the studied period dropped from 8.7% to 3.1% in Australia; from 42.1% to 22.4% in Brazil; and remained stable in USA, nearly 8.0%. Absolute income inequalities were highest in Brazil, followed by the USA and Australia; relative inequalities were lower in Brazil than in Australia and the USA. ID was higher among Brazilian females (2010) and for the poorest group in all countries and periods. A remarkable reduction in absolute inequalities were found in Australia [Slope Index of Inequality (SII) and AIC 60%] and in Brazil (SII 25%; ACI 33%) while relative inequalities increased both in Australia (RCI and RII 40%) and in Brazil (RCI 24%; RII 38%). No changes in absolute and relative income inequalities were found in the USA. There were still persistent absolute and relative income inequalities in ID in all examined countries. There has been a reduction in absolute income inequalities in ID but an increase in relative income inequalities. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Prospective register-based study of the impact of immigration on educational inequalities in mortality in Norway.

    PubMed

    Elstad, Jon Ivar; Øverbye, Einar; Dahl, Espen

    2015-04-11

    Differences in mortality with regard to socioeconomic status have widened in recent decades in many European countries, including Norway. A rapid upsurge of immigration to Norway has occurred since the 1990s. The article investigates the impact of immigration on educational mortality differences among adults in Norway. Two linked register-based data sets are analyzed; the first consists of all registered inhabitants aged 20-69 in Norway January 1, 1993 (2.6 millions), and the second of all registered inhabitants aged 20-69 as of January 1, 2008 (2.8 millions). Deaths 1993-1996 and 2008-2011, respectively, immigrant status, and other background information are available in the data. Mortality is examined by Cox regression analyses and by estimations of age-adjusted deaths per 100,000 personyears. Both relative and absolute educational inequality in mortality increased from the 1993-1996 period to 2008-2011, but overall mortality levels went down during these years. Immigrants in general, and almost all the analyzed immigrant subcategories, had lower mortality than the native majority. This was due to comparatively low mortality among lower educated immigrants, while mortality among higher educated immigrants was similar to the mortality level of highly educated natives. The widening of educational inequality in mortality during the 1990s and 2000s in Norway was not due to immigration. Immigration rather contributed to slightly lower overall mortality in the population and a less steep educational gradient in mortality.

  10. Inequalities in oral health: Understanding the contributions of education and income.

    PubMed

    Farmer, Julie; Phillips, Rebecca C; Singhal, Sonica; Quiñonez, Carlos

    2017-09-14

    To quantify the extent to which income and education explain gradients in oral health outcomes. Using data from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS 2003), binary logistic regression models were constructed to examine the relationship between income and education on self-reported oral health (SROH) and chewing difficulties (CD) while controlling for age, sex, ethnicity, employment status and dental insurance coverage. The relative index of inequality (RII) was utilized to quantify the extent to which income and education explain gradients in poor SROH and CD. Income and education gradients were present for SROH and CD. From fully adjusted models, income inequalities were greater for CD (RIIinc = 2.85) than for SROH (RIIinc = 2.75), with no substantial difference in education inequalities between the two. Income explained 37.4% and 42.4% of the education gradient in SROH and CD respectively, whereas education explained 45.2% and 6.1% of income gradients in SROH and CD respectively. Education appears to play a larger role than income when explaining inequalities in SROH; however, it is the opposite for CD. In this sample of the Canadian adult population, income explained over one third of the education gradient in SROH and CDs, whereas the contribution of education to income gradients varied by choice of self-reported outcome. Results call for stakeholders to improve affordability of dental care in order to reduce inequalities in the Canadian population.

  11. Decomposing health inequality with population-based surveys: a case study in Rwanda.

    PubMed

    Liu, Kai; Lu, Chunling

    2018-05-10

    Ensuring equal access to care and providing financial risk protection are at the center of the global health agenda. While Rwanda has made impressive progress in improving health outcomes, inequalities in medical care utilization and household catastrophic health spending (HCHS) between the impoverished and non-impoverished populations persist. Decomposing inequalities will help us understand the factors contributing to inequalities and design effective policy instruments in reducing inequalities. This study aims to decompose the inequalities in medical care utilization among those reporting illnesses and HCHS between the poverty and non-poverty groups in Rwanda. Using the 2005 and 2010 nationally representative Integrated Living Conditions Surveys, our analysis focuses on measuring contributions to inequalities from poverty status and other sources. We conducted multivariate logistic regression analysis to obtain poverty's contribution to inequalities by controlling for all observed covariates. We used multivariate nonlinear decomposition method with logistic regression models to partition the relative and absolute contributions from other sources to inequalities due to compositional or response effects. Poverty status accounted for the majority of inequalities in medical care utilization (absolute contribution 0.093 in 2005 and 0.093 in 2010) and HCHS (absolute contribution 0.070 in 2005 and 0.032 in 2010). Health insurance status (absolute contribution 0.0076 in 2005 and 0.0246 in 2010) and travel time to health centers (absolute contribution 0.0025 in 2005 and 0.0014 in 2010) were significant contributors to inequality in medical care utilization. Health insurance status (absolute contribution 0.0021 in 2005 and 0.0011 in 2010), having under-five children (absolute contribution 0.0012 in 2005 and 0.0011 in 2010), and having disabled family members (absolute contribution 0.0002 in 2005 and 0.0001 in 2010) were significant contributors to inequality in HCHS

  12. Should Less Inequality in Education Lead to a More Equal Income Distribution?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Foldvari, Peter; van Leeuwen, Bas

    2011-01-01

    In this paper, we revisit the question whether inequality in education and human capital is closely related to income inequality. Using the most popular functional forms describing the relationship between, first, output and human capital and, second, education and human capital, we find that the effect of inequality in schooling on income…

  13. Capital, Inequality and Education in Conflict-Affected Contexts

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Novelli, Mario

    2016-01-01

    Piketty's "Capital in the Twenty-First Century" has brought the issue of inequality to the centre of political debate. This article explores contemporary research on the relationship between education and inequality in conflict-affected contexts with a view to seeing how Piketty's work speaks to these issues as a field of research and…

  14. Education and the Inequalities of Place

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roscigno, Vincent J.; Tomaskovic-Devey, Donald; Crowley, Martha L.

    2006-01-01

    Students living in inner city and rural areas of the United States exhibit lower educational achievement and a higher likelihood of dropping out of high school than do their suburban counterparts. Educational research and policy has tended to neglect these inequalities or, at best, focus on one type but not the other. In this article, we integrate…

  15. Education Rights, Education Policies and Inequality in South Africa

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Spreen, Carol Anne; Vally, Salim

    2006-01-01

    In this article we explore education policy changes in South Africa through a rights-based framework. We situate our analysis in the context of deepening poverty and inequality arguing that progress (or the lack thereof) in schools cannot be divorced from poverty and its consequences. We show that education reform in South Africa has been situated…

  16. Trends in Inequalities in Induced Abortion According to Educational Level among Urban Women

    PubMed Central

    García-Subirats, Irene; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica; Díez, Elia; Borrell, Carme

    2010-01-01

    This study aims to describe trends in inequalities by women’s socioeconomic position and age in induced abortion in Barcelona (Spain) over 1992–1996 and 2000–2004. Induced abortions occurring in residents in Barcelona aged 20 and 44 years in the study period are included. Variables are age, educational level, and time periods. Induced abortion rates per 1,000 women and absolute differences for educational level, age, and time period are calculated. Poisson regression models are fitted to obtain the relative risk (RR) for trends. Induced abortion rates increased from 10.1 to 14.6 per 1,000 women aged 20–44 (RR = 1.44; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.41–1.47) between 1992–1996 and 2000–2004. The abortion rate was highest among women aged 20–24 and 25–34 and changed little among women aged 35–44. Among women aged 20–24 and 25–34, those with a primary education or less had higher rates of induced abortion in the second period. Induced abortion rates also grew in those women with secondary education. In the 35–44 age group, the induced abortion rate declined among women with a secondary education (RR = 0.66; 95% CI 0.60–0.73) and slightly among those with a greater level of education. Induced abortion is rising most among women in poor socioeconomic positions. This study reveals deep inequalities in induced abortion in Barcelona, Spain. The trends identified in this study suggest that policy efforts to reduce unintended pregnancies are failing in Spain. Our study fills an important gap in literature on recent trends in Southern Europe. PMID:20229107

  17. Measuring Education Inequality: Gini Coefficients of Education. Policy Research Working Paper.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thomas, Vinod; Wang, Yan; Fan, Xibo

    This paper aims at developing a measure for educational inequality for a large number of countries over time, using the concept of education Gini index based on school attainment data of the concerned population (or labor force). Education Gini could be used as one of the indicators of welfare, complementing average educational attainment, health…

  18. Measuring Socioeconomic Inequalities With Predicted Absolute Incomes Rather Than Wealth Quintiles: A Comparative Assessment Using Child Stunting Data From National Surveys.

    PubMed

    Fink, Günther; Victora, Cesar G; Harttgen, Kenneth; Vollmer, Sebastian; Vidaletti, Luís Paulo; Barros, Aluisio J D

    2017-04-01

    To compare the predictive power of synthetic absolute income measures with that of asset-based wealth quintiles in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) using child stunting as an outcome. We pooled data from 239 nationally representative household surveys from LMICs and computed absolute incomes in US dollars based on households' asset rank as well as data on national consumption and inequality levels. We used multivariable regression models to compare the predictive power of the created income measure with the predictive power of existing asset indicator measures. In cross-country analysis, log absolute income predicted 54.5% of stunting variation observed, compared with 20% of variation explained by wealth quintiles. For within-survey analysis, we also found absolute income gaps to be predictive of the gaps between stunting in the wealthiest and poorest households (P < .001). Our results suggest that absolute income levels can greatly improve the prediction of stunting levels across and within countries over time, compared with models that rely solely on relative wealth quintiles.

  19. Inequalities in health by social class dimensions in European countries of different political traditions.

    PubMed

    Espelt, Albert; Borrell, Carme; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica; Muntaner, Carles; Pasarín, M Isabel; Benach, Joan; Schaap, Maartje; Kunst, Anton E; Navarro, Vicente

    2008-10-01

    To compare inequalities in self-perceived health in the population older than 50 years, in 2004, using Wright's social class dimensions, in nine European countries grouped in three political traditions (Social democracy, Christian democracy and Late democracies). Cross-sectional design, including data of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (Sweden, Denmark, Austria, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Greece). The population aged from 50 to 74 years was included. Absolute and relative social class dimension inequalities in poor self-reported health and long-term illness were determined for each sex and political tradition. Relative inequalities were assessed by fitting Poisson regression models with robust variance estimators. Absolute and relative health inequalities by social class dimensions are found in the three political traditions, but these differences are more marked in Late democracies and mainly among women. For example the prevalence ratio of poor self-perceived health comparing poorly educated women with highly educated women, was 1.75 (95% CI: 1.39-2.21) in Late democracies and 1.36 (95% CI: 1.21-1.52) in Social democracies. The prevalence differences were 24.2 and 13.7%, respectively. This study is one of the first to show the impact of different political traditions on social class inequalities in health. These results emphasize the need to evaluate the impact of the implementation of public policies.

  20. Ethnicity, Inequality, and Higher Education in Malaysia.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Selvaratnam, Viswanathan

    1988-01-01

    Traces the development since 1957 of Malaysian education policies aimed at providing equitable access to higher education. Suggests that these policies have increased representation of the Malay underclass in tertiary institutions and the professions, but have had little effect on intraethnic class inequalities. 46 references. (SV)

  1. Does Educational Achievement Help To Explain Income Inequality? Working Papers No. 208.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Checchi, Daniele

    This paper proposes to measure inequality in educational achievement by constructing a Gini index on educational attainment. It uses the proposed measure to analyze the relationship between inequality in world income and educational attainment (in terms of both the average attainment and the dispersion of attainment). Though theoretical…

  2. Educational inequalities in smoking over the life cycle: an analysis by cohort and gender.

    PubMed

    Bricard, Damien; Jusot, Florence; Beck, François; Khlat, Myriam; Legleye, Stéphane

    2016-01-01

    The study investigates the life cycle patterns of educational inequalities in smoking according to gender over three successive generations. Based on retrospective smoking histories collected by the nationwide French Health Barometer survey 2010, we explored educational inequalities in smoking at each age, using the relative index of inequality. Educational inequalities in smoking increase across cohorts for men and women, corresponding to a decline in smoking among the highly educated alongside progression among the lower educated. The analysis also shows a life cycle evolution: for all cohorts and for men and women, inequalities are considerable during adolescence, then start declining from 18 years until the age of peak prevalence (around 25), after which they remain stable throughout the life cycle, even tending to rise for the most recent cohort. This analysis contributes to the description of the "smoking epidemic" and highlights adolescence and late adulthood as life cycle stages with greater inequalities.

  3. Exploring the Relationship Between Absolute and Relative Position and Late-Life Depression: Evidence From 10 European Countries

    PubMed Central

    Ladin, Keren; Daniels, Norman; Kawachi, Ichiro

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: Socioeconomic inequality has been associated with higher levels of morbidity and mortality. This study explores the role of absolute and relative deprivation in predicting late-life depression on both individual and country levels. Design and Methods: Country- and individual-level inequality indicators were used in multivariate logistic regression and in relative indexes of inequality. Data obtained from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE, Wave 1, Release 2) included 22,777 men and women (aged 50–104 years) from 10 European countries. Late-life depression was measured using the EURO-D scale and corresponding clinical cut point. Absolute deprivation was measured using gross domestic product and median household income at the country level and socioeconomic status at the individual level. Relative deprivation was measured by Gini coefficients at the country level and educational attainment at the individual level. Results: Rates of depression ranged from 18.10% in Denmark to 36.84% in Spain reflecting a clear north–south gradient. Measures of absolute and relative deprivation were significant in predicting depression at both country and individual levels. Findings suggest that the adverse impact of societal inequality cannot be overcome by increased individual-level or country-level income. Increases in individual-level income did not mitigate the effect of country-level relative deprivation. Implications: Mental health disparities persist throughout later life whereby persons exposed to higher levels of country-level inequality suffer greater morbidity compared with those in countries with less inequality. Cross-national variation in the relationship between inequality and depression illuminates the need for further research. PMID:19515635

  4. Inequalities in utilisation of general practitioner and specialist services in 9 European countries.

    PubMed

    Stirbu, Irina; Kunst, Anton E; Mielck, Andreas; Mackenbach, Johan P

    2011-10-31

    The aim of this study is to describe the magnitude of educational inequalities in utilisation of general practitioner (GP) and specialist services in 9 European countries. In addition to West European countries, we have included 3 Eastern European countries: Hungary, Estonia and Latvia. To cover the gap in knowledge we pay a special attention to the magnitude of inequalities among patients with chronic conditions. Data on the use of GP and specialist services were derived from national health surveys of Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands and Norway. For each country and education level we calculated the absolute prevalence and relative inequalities in utilisation of GP and specialist services. In order to account for the need for care, the results were adjusted by the measure of self-assessed health. People with lower education used GP services equally often in most countries (except Belgium and Germany) compared with those with a higher level of education. At the same time people with a higher education used specialist care services significantly more often in all countries, except in the Netherlands. The general pattern of educational inequalities in utilisation of specialist care was similar for both men and women. Inequalities in utilisation of specialist care were equally large in Eastern European and in Western European countries, except for Latvia where the inequalities were somewhat larger. Similarly, large inequalities were found in the utilisation of specialist care among patients with chronic diseases, diabetes, and hypertension. We found large inequalities in the utilisation of specialist care. These inequalities were not compensated by utilisation of GP services. Of particular concern is the presence of inequalities among patients with a high need for specialist care, such as those with chronic diseases. © 2011 Stirbu et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

  5. Gender differences in socioeconomic inequality in mortality.

    PubMed

    Mustard, C A; Etches, J

    2003-12-01

    There is uncertainty about whether position in a socioeconomic hierarchy confers different mortality risks on men and women. The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review of gender differences in socioeconomic inequality in risk of death. This research systematically reviewed observational cohort studies describing all cause or cause specific mortality for populations aged 25-64 in developed countries. For inclusion in the review, mortality had to be reported stratified by gender and by one or more measures of socioeconomic status. For all eligible studies, five absolute and six relative measures of the socioeconomic inequality in mortality were computed for male and female populations separately. A total of 136 published papers were reviewed for eligibility, with 58 studies deemed eligible for inclusion. Of these eligible studies, 20 papers published data that permitted the computation of both absolute and relative measures of inequality. Absolute measures of socioeconomic mortality inequality for men and women generally agreed, with about 90% of studies indicating that male mortality was more unequal than female mortality across socioeconomic groups. In contrast, the pattern of relative inequality results across the 20 studies suggested that male and female socioeconomic inequality in mortality was equivalent. Inferences about gender differences in socioeconomic inequality in mortality are sensitive to the choice of inequality measure. Wider understanding of this methodological issue would improve the clarity of the reporting and synthesis of evidence on the magnitude of health inequalities in populations.

  6. Inequality as a Way of Life: Education and Social Class in Latin America

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stromquist, Nelly P.

    2004-01-01

    This article presents a regional analysis of educational inequalities in Latin America, drawing on a variety of sources at the national and cross-national levels. It traces how inequalities in education tend to manifest themselves and which population groups tend to be the most affected. The persistence of inequalities is a curious social…

  7. Educational inequalities in self-rated health across US states and European countries.

    PubMed

    Präg, Patrick; Subramanian, S V

    2017-07-01

    The US shows a distinct health disadvantage when compared to other high-income nations. A potential lever to reduce this disadvantage is to improve the health situation of lower socioeconomic groups. Our objective is to explore how the considerable within-US variation in health inequalities compares to the health inequalities across other Western countries. Representative survey data from 44 European countries and the US federal states were obtained from the fourth wave of the European Values Study (EVS) and the 2008 wave of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Using binary logistic regression, we analyze different forms of educational inequalities in self-rated health (SRH), adjusted for age and sex. The extent of educational inequalities in SRH varies considerably over European countries and US states; with US states in general showing greater inequality, however, differences between US states and European countries are less clear than commonly assumed. The US has considerable differences in educational inequalities in SRH across geographic locations. To understand the reasons for the US health disadvantage, comparative research has to take into account the vast variation in health inequalities within the US.

  8. Trends in inequalities in premature cancer mortality by educational level in Colombia, 1998-2007.

    PubMed

    de Vries, Esther; Arroyave, Ivan; Pardo, Constanza; Wiesner, Carolina; Murillo, Raul; Forman, David; Burdorf, Alex; Avendaño, Mauricio

    2015-05-01

    There is a paucity of studies on socioeconomic inequalities in cancer mortality in developing countries. We examined trends in inequalities in cancer mortality by educational attainment in Colombia during a period of epidemiological transition and rapid expansion of health insurance coverage. Population mortality data (1998-2007) were linked to census data to obtain age-standardised cancer mortality rates by educational attainment at ages 25-64 years for stomach, cervical, prostate, lung, colorectal, breast and other cancers. We used Poisson regression to model mortality by educational attainment and estimated the contribution of specific cancers to the slope index of inequality in cancer mortality. We observed large educational inequalities in cancer mortality, particularly for cancer of the cervix (rate ratio (RR) primary vs tertiary groups=5.75, contributing 51% of cancer inequalities), stomach (RR=2.56 for males, contributing 49% of total cancer inequalities and RR=1.98 for females, contributing 14% to total cancer inequalities) and lung (RR=1.64 for males contributing 17% of total cancer inequalities and 1.32 for females contributing 5% to total cancer inequalities). Total cancer mortality rates declined faster among those with higher education, with the exception of mortality from cervical cancer, which declined more rapidly in the lower educational groups. There are large socioeconomic inequalities in preventable cancer mortality in Colombia, which underscore the need for intensifying prevention efforts. Reduction of cervical cancer can be achieved through reducing human papilloma virus infection, early detection and improved access to treatment of preneoplastic lesions. Reinforcing antitobacco measures may be particularly important to curb inequalities in cancer mortality. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  9. Science in Educational Administration: A Comment on the Holmes-Greenfield Dialogue [and] Absolutism and Educational Administration: A Response to Ryan.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ryan, James J.; Holmes, Mark

    1988-01-01

    Two articles comment on the debate over the utility of science in educational administration. Critiques of various positions on the topic point out the possible effects of conservatism and positivism on inequality and inequity in educational administration. (CB)

  10. Building the Movement to End Educational Inequity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kopp, Wendy

    2008-01-01

    Teach for America exists to address educational inequity--the stunning reality that the American nation, which aspires so admirably to be a land of equal opportunity, where one is born still largely determines one's educational outcomes. Despite plenty of evidence that children growing up in poverty can do well academically--when given the…

  11. Trends in inequalities in premature cancer mortality by educational level in Colombia, 1998–2007

    PubMed Central

    de Vries, Esther; Arroyave, Ivan; Pardo, Constanza; Wiesner, Carolina; Murillo, Raul; Forman, David; Burdorf, Alex; Avendaño, Mauricio

    2015-01-01

    Background There is paucity of studies on socioeconomic inequalities in cancer mortality in developing countries. We examined trends in inequalities in cancer mortality by educational attainment in Colombia during a period of epidemiological transition and a rapid expansion of health insurance coverage. Methods Population mortality data (1998–2007) were linked to census data to obtain age-standardised cancer mortality rates by educational attainment at ages 25–64 years for stomach, cervical, prostate, lung, colorectal, breast and other cancers. We used Poisson regression to model mortality by educational attainment and estimated the contribution of specific cancers to the Slope Index of Inequality in cancer mortality. Results We observed large educational inequalities in cancer mortality, particularly for cancer of the cervix (RR primary versus tertiary groups=5.75, contributing 51% of cancer inequalities), stomach (RR=2.56 for males, contributing 49% of total cancer inequalities, and RR=1.98 for females, contributing 14% to total cancer inequalities), and lung (RR=1.64 for males contributing 17% of total cancer inequalities, and 1.32 for females contributing 5% to total cancer inequalities). Total cancer mortality rates declined faster among those with higher education, with the exception of mortality from cervical cancer, which declined more rapidly in the lower educational groups. Conclusion There are large socioeconomic inequalities in preventable cancer mortality in Colombia, which underscore the need for intensifying prevention efforts. Reducing cervical cancer through reducing HPV infection, early detection and improved access to treatment of preneoplasic lesions. Reinforcing anti-tobacco measures may be particularly important to curb inequalities in cancer mortality. PMID:25492898

  12. Social Inequality in Access to Higher Education: Grade Inflation in Private Schools and the Ineffectiveness of Compensatory Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Neves, Tiago; Ferraz, Hélder; Nata, Gil

    2016-01-01

    Access to higher education is affected by inequalities worldwide. Here we present a longitudinal study based on large databases of scores in upper secondary education and access to higher education in Portugal. Our findings show how access to higher education builds on and reinforces social inequalities: (1) private, fee-paying secondary schools…

  13. Access to treatment and educational inequalities in cancer survival.

    PubMed

    Fiva, Jon H; Hægeland, Torbjørn; Rønning, Marte; Syse, Astri

    2014-07-01

    The public health care systems in the Nordic countries provide high quality care almost free of charge to all citizens. However, social inequalities in health persist. Previous research has, for example, documented substantial educational inequalities in cancer survival. We investigate to what extent this may be driven by differential access to and utilization of high quality treatment options. Quasi-experimental evidence based on the establishment of regional cancer wards indicates that (i) highly educated individuals utilized centralized specialized treatment to a greater extent than less educated patients and (ii) the use of such treatment improved these patients' survival. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Are Educational Mismatches Responsible for the "Inequality Increasing Effect" of Education?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Budria, Santiago

    2011-01-01

    This paper asks whether educational mismatches can account for the positive association between education and wage inequality found in the data. We use two different data sources, the European Community Household Panel and the Portuguese Labour Force Survey, and consider several types of mismatch, including overqualification, underqualification…

  15. Building the Movement to End Educational Inequity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kopp, Wendy

    2009-01-01

    Teach for America (TFA) exists to address educational inequity--the stunning reality that in this nation, which aspires so admirably to be a land of equal opportunity, where one is born still largely determines one's educational outcomes. Despite plenty of evidence that children growing up in poverty can do well academically--when given the…

  16. Education, Horizontal Inequalities and Ethnic Relations in Nigeria

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ukiwo, Ukoha

    2007-01-01

    The article focuses on the role of higher education in generating or mitigating inequality among ethno-regional groups and its impact on ethnic relations with evidence from Nigeria. It shows that access to education in Nigeria has been politicised. This is because of the perceived role of education in engendering political and socio-economic…

  17. Relationships between income inequality and health: a study on rural and urban regions of Canada.

    PubMed

    Vafaei, Afshin; Rosenberg, Mark W; Pickett, William

    2010-01-01

    significant contribution to the final model were education and alcohol consumption. The effect of rural/urban geographic status on the relationship of interest was similar to other covariates. This variable did not change the individual relationship between income inequality or absolute income and the measure of population health status. In both rural and urban regions, absolute income and education had positive effects on population health. In urban regions alcohol consumption was a significant negative contributor to population health status; whereas, in rural regions, smoking status had a significant negative effect on population health status. Across Canadian health regions, health status in populations was a function of absolute income but not relative income. Regions with higher levels of education had better levels of self-rated health. A larger percentage of heavy drinkers was also correlated with lower population health status. Findings were consistently observed in rural and urban populations. The study findings have implications for public health, economic, and social policies.

  18. The Political Economy of Education and Inequality: Reflections on Piketty

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Klees, Steven J.

    2017-01-01

    Piketty's "Capitalism in the twenty-first century" provides a superb, detailed historical analysis of the evolution of income and wealth inequality. Piketty demonstrates vast and increasing inequality that he argues might possibly be tempered in the future by economic growth and educational expansion supplemented by government…

  19. The Economics of Inequality in Education. Studies in Economic Development and Planning, No. 44.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tilak, Jandhyala B. G.

    The purpose of this study is to examine the various economic facets of inequality in education in India. The specific focus is on inter-group inequalities, such as inequality between males and females and between backward and advanced castes. It is hypothesized that returns to education accrue differently to different groups of population and…

  20. Educational and wealth inequalities in tobacco use among men and women in 54 low-income and middle-income countries.

    PubMed

    Sreeramareddy, Chandrashekhar T; Harper, Sam; Ernstsen, Linda

    2018-01-01

    Socioeconomic differentials of tobacco smoking in high-income countries are well described. However, studies to support health policies and place monitoring systems to tackle socioeconomic inequalities in smoking and smokeless tobacco use common in low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs) are seldom reported. We aimed to describe, sex-wise, educational and wealth-related inequalities in tobacco use in LMICs. We analysed Demographic and Health Survey data on tobacco use collected from large nationally representative samples of men and women in 54 LMICs. We estimated the weighted prevalence of any current tobacco use (including smokeless tobacco) in each country for 4 educational groups and 4 wealth groups. We calculated absolute and relative measures of inequality, that is, the slope index of inequality (SII) and relative index of inequality (RII), which take into account the distribution of prevalence across all education and wealth groups and account for population size. We also calculated the aggregate SII and RII for low-income (LIC), lower-middle-income (lMIC) and upper-middle-income (uMIC) countries as per World Bank classification. Male tobacco use was highest in Bangladesh (70.3%) and lowest in Sao Tome (7.4%), whereas female tobacco use was highest in Madagascar (21%) and lowest in Tajikistan (0.22%). Among men, educational inequalities varied widely between countries, but aggregate RII and SII showed an inverse trend by country wealth groups. RII was 3.61 (95% CI 2.83 to 4.61) in LICs, 1.99 (95% CI 1.66 to 2.38) in lMIC and 1.82 (95% CI 1.24 to 2.67) in uMIC. Wealth inequalities among men varied less between countries, but RII and SII showed an inverse pattern where RII was 2.43 (95% CI 2.05 to 2.88) in LICs, 1.84 (95% CI 1.54 to 2.21) in lMICs and 1.67 (95% CI 1.15 to 2.42) in uMICs. For educational inequalities among women, the RII varied much more than SII varied between the countries, and the aggregate RII was 14.49 (95% CI 8.87 to 23.68) in LICs, 3

  1. Inequality in malnutrition by maternal education levels in early childhood: the Prospective Cohort of Thai Children (PCTC).

    PubMed

    Hong, Seo Ah; Winichagoon, Pattanee; Mongkolchati, Aroonsri

    2017-05-01

    As tackling socioeconomic inequality in child malnutrition still remains one of the greatest challenges in developing countries, we examined maternal educational differences in malnutrition and the magnitude of its inequality among 4,198 children from the Prospective Cohort study of Thai Children (PCTC). Prevalence of stunting, underweight, and wasting from birth to 24 months was calculated using the new WHO growth chart. The Relative Index of Inequality (RII) was used to examine the magnitude and trend of inequality in malnutrition between maternal educational levels. The low education group had lower weight and height in most ages than the high education group. Faltering in height was observed in all education levels, but was most remarkable in the low education group. On the other hand, while upward trends for weight-for-age and weight-for-height across ages were observed in the high education group, a marked decline between 6 to 12 months was observed in the low education group. An increasing trend in inequality in The RII revealed an increasing trend in inequality in stunting, underweight, and wasting by maternal education levels was observed during infancy with an almost monotonic increase until 24 months, although the inequality in wasting decreased after 18 months of age. Inequality in malnutrition remarkably increased during infancy, and for stunting and underweight it remained until 24 months. These findings shed light on the extent of malnutrition inequality during the first 2 years of life and they suggest sustainable efforts must be established at the national level to tackle the malnutrition inequality in infancy.

  2. Socioeconomic inequalities in all-cause mortality in the Czech Republic, Russia, Poland and Lithuania in the 2000s: findings from the HAPIEE Study.

    PubMed

    Vandenheede, Hadewijch; Vikhireva, Olga; Pikhart, Hynek; Kubinova, Ruzena; Malyutina, Sofia; Pajak, Andrzej; Tamosiunas, Abdonas; Peasey, Anne; Simonova, Galina; Topor-Madry, Roman; Marmot, Michael; Bobak, Martin

    2014-04-01

    Relatively large socioeconomic inequalities in health and mortality have been observed in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the former Soviet Union (FSU). Yet comparative data are sparse and virtually all studies include only education. The aim of this study is to quantify and compare socioeconomic inequalities in all-cause mortality during the 2000s in urban population samples from four CEE/FSU countries, by three different measures of socioeconomic position (SEP) (education, difficulty buying food and household amenities), reflecting different aspects of SEP. Data from the prospective population-based HAPIEE (Health, Alcohol, and Psychosocial factors in Eastern Europe) study were used. The baseline survey (2002-2005) included 16 812 men and 19 180 women aged 45-69 years in Novosibirsk (Russia), Krakow (Poland), Kaunas (Lithuania) and seven Czech towns. Deaths in the cohorts were identified through mortality registers. Data were analysed by direct standardisation and Cox regression, quantifying absolute and relative SEP differences. Mortality inequalities by the three SEP indicators were observed in all samples. The magnitude of inequalities varied according to gender, country and SEP measure. As expected, given the high mortality rates in Russian men, largest absolute inequalities were found among Russian men (educational slope index of inequality was 19.4 per 1000 person-years). Largest relative inequalities were observed in Czech men and Lithuanian subjects. Disadvantage by all three SEP measures remained strongly associated with increased mortality after adjusting for the other SEP indicators. The results emphasise the importance of all SEP measures for understanding mortality inequalities in CEE/FSU.

  3. Who Decided College Access in Chinese Secondary Education? Rural-Urban Inequality of Basic Education in Contemporary China

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Li, Jian

    2016-01-01

    This paper investigates the rural-urban inequalities in basic education of contemporary China. The China Education Panel Survey (2013-2014) (CEPS) was utilized to analyze the gaps between rural and urban inequality in junior high schools in terms of three domains, which include the equalities of access, inputs, and outcomes. From the sociocultural…

  4. Education, Productivity and Inequality: The East African Natural Experiment.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Knight, John B.; Sabot, Richard H.

    The relationship between resources devoted to education and the economy of developing nations is explored. The research seeks to understand if and how investment in education translates into increased economic growth and labor productivity. Additionally, the function of education in reducing various dimensions of economic inequality is examined.…

  5. Irritable bowel syndrome is concentrated in people with higher educations in Iran: an inequality analysis.

    PubMed

    Mansouri, Asieh; Rarani, Mostafa Amini; Fallahi, Mosayeb; Alvandi, Iman

    2017-01-01

    Like any other health-related disorder, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) has a differential distribution with respect to socioeconomic factors. This study aimed to estimate and decompose educational inequalities in the prevalence of IBS. Sampling was performed using a multi-stage random cluster sampling approach. The data of 1,850 residents of Kish Island aged 15 years or older were included, and the determinants of IBS were identified using a generalized estimating equation regression model. The concentration index of educational inequality in cases of IBS was estimated and decomposed as the specific inequality index. The prevalence of IBS in this study was 21.57% (95% confidence interval [CI], 19.69 to 23.44%). The concentration index of IBS was 0.20 (95% CI, 0.14 to 0.26). A multivariable regression model revealed that age, sex, level of education, marital status, anxiety, and poor general health were significant determinants of IBS. In the decomposition analysis, level of education (89.91%), age (-11.99%), and marital status (9.11%) were the three main contributors to IBS inequality. Anxiety and poor general health were the next two contributors to IBS inequality, and were responsible for more than 12% of the total observed inequality. The main contributors of IBS inequality were education level, age, and marital status. Given the high percentage of anxious individuals among highly educated, young, single, and divorced people, we can conclude that all contributors to IBS inequality may be partially influenced by psychological factors. Therefore, programs that promote the development of mental health to alleviate the abovementioned inequality in this population are highly warranted.

  6. Irritable bowel syndrome is concentrated in people with higher educations in Iran: an inequality analysis

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    OBJECTIVES Like any other health-related disorder, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) has a differential distribution with respect to socioeconomic factors. This study aimed to estimate and decompose educational inequalities in the prevalence of IBS. METHODS Sampling was performed using a multi-stage random cluster sampling approach. The data of 1,850 residents of Kish Island aged 15 years or older were included, and the determinants of IBS were identified using a generalized estimating equation regression model. The concentration index of educational inequality in cases of IBS was estimated and decomposed as the specific inequality index. RESULTS The prevalence of IBS in this study was 21.57% (95% confidence interval [CI], 19.69 to 23.44%). The concentration index of IBS was 0.20 (95% CI, 0.14 to 0.26). A multivariable regression model revealed that age, sex, level of education, marital status, anxiety, and poor general health were significant determinants of IBS. In the decomposition analysis, level of education (89.91%), age (−11.99%), and marital status (9.11%) were the three main contributors to IBS inequality. Anxiety and poor general health were the next two contributors to IBS inequality, and were responsible for more than 12% of the total observed inequality. CONCLUSIONS The main contributors of IBS inequality were education level, age, and marital status. Given the high percentage of anxious individuals among highly educated, young, single, and divorced people, we can conclude that all contributors to IBS inequality may be partially influenced by psychological factors. Therefore, programs that promote the development of mental health to alleviate the abovementioned inequality in this population are highly warranted. PMID:28171714

  7. Trends in educational inequalities in premature mortality in Belgium between the 1990s and the 2000s: the contribution of specific causes of deaths.

    PubMed

    Renard, Françoise; Gadeyne, Sylvie; Devleesschauwer, Brecht; Tafforeau, Jean; Deboosere, Patrick

    2017-04-01

    Reducing socioeconomic inequalities in mortality, a key public health objective may be supported by a careful monitoring and assessment of the contributions of specific causes of death to the global inequality. The 1991 and 2001 Belgian censuses were linked with cause-of-death data, each yielding a study population of over 5 million individuals aged 25-64, followed up for 5 years. Age-standardised mortality rates (ASMR) were computed by educational level (EL) and cause. Inequalities were measured through rate differences (RDs), rate ratios (RRs) and population attributable fractions (PAFs). We analysed changes in educational inequalities between the 1990s and the 2000s, and decomposed the PAF into the main causes of death. All-cause and avoidable ASMR decreased in all ELs and both sexes. Lung cancer, ischaemic heart disease (IHD), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and suicide in men, and IHD, stroke, lung cancer and COPD in women had the highest impact on population mortality. RDs decreased in men but increased in women. RRs and PAFs increased in both sexes, albeit more in women. In men, the impact of lung cancer and COPD inequalities on population mortality decreased while that of suicide and IHD increased. In women, the impact of all causes except IHD increased. Absolute inequalities decreased in men while increasing in women; relative inequalities increased in both sexes. The PAFs decomposition revealed that targeting mortality inequalities from lung cancer, IHD, COPD in both sexes, suicide in men and stroke in women would have the largest impact at population level. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  8. Changing ethnic inequalities in mortality in New Zealand over 30 years: linked cohort studies with 68.9 million person-years of follow-up.

    PubMed

    Disney, George; Teng, Andrea; Atkinson, June; Wilson, Nick; Blakely, Tony

    2017-01-01

    Internationally, ethnic inequalities in mortality within countries are increasingly recognized as a public health concern. But few countries have data to monitor such inequalities. We aimed to provide a detailed description of ethnic inequalities (Māori [indigenous], Pacific, and European/Other) in mortality for a country with high quality ethnicity data, using both standard and novel visualization methods. Cohort studies of the entire New Zealand population were conducted, using probabilistically-linked Census and mortality data from 1981 to 2011 (68.9 million person years). Absolute (standardized rate difference) and relative (standardized rate ratio) inequalities were calculated, in 1-74-year-olds, for Māori and Pacific peoples in comparison to European/Other. All-cause mortality rates were highest for Māori, followed by Pacific peoples then European/Other, and declined in all three ethnic groups over time. Pacific peoples experienced the slowest annual percentage fall in mortality rates, then Māori, with European/Other having the highest percentage falls - resulting in widening relative inequalities. Absolute inequalities, however, for both Māori and Pacific males compared to European/Other have been falling since 1996. But for females, only Māori absolute inequalities (compared with European/Other) have been falling. Regarding cause of death, cancer is becoming a more important contributor than cardiovascular disease (CVD) to absolute inequalities, especially for Māori females. We found declines in all-cause mortality rates, over time, for each ethnic group of interest. Ethnic mortality inequalities are generally stable or even falling in absolute terms, but have increased on a relative scale. The drivers of these inequalities in mortality are transitioning over time, away from CVD to cancer and diabetes; such transitions are likely in other countries, and warrant further research. To address these inequalities, policymakers need to enhance prevention

  9. Changing ethnic inequalities in mortality in New Zealand over 30 years: linked cohort studies with 68.9 million person-years of follow-up.

    PubMed

    Disney, George; Teng, Andrea; Atkinson, June; Wilson, Nick; Blakely, Tony

    2017-04-26

    Internationally, ethnic inequalities in mortality within countries are increasingly recognized as a public health concern. But few countries have data to monitor such inequalities. We aimed to provide a detailed description of ethnic inequalities (Māori [indigenous], Pacific, and European/Other) in mortality for a country with high quality ethnicity data, using both standard and novel visualization methods. Cohort studies of the entire New Zealand population were conducted, using probabilistically-linked Census and mortality data from 1981 to 2011 (68.9 million person years). Absolute (standardized rate difference) and relative (standardized rate ratio) inequalities were calculated, in 1-74-year-olds, for Māori and Pacific peoples in comparison to European/Other. All-cause mortality rates were highest for Māori, followed by Pacific peoples then European/Other, and declined in all three ethnic groups over time. Pacific peoples experienced the slowest annual percentage fall in mortality rates, then Māori, with European/Other having the highest percentage falls - resulting in widening relative inequalities. Absolute inequalities, however, for both Māori and Pacific males compared to European/Other have been falling since 1996. But for females, only Māori absolute inequalities (compared with European/Other) have been falling. Regarding cause of death, cancer is becoming a more important contributor than cardiovascular disease (CVD) to absolute inequalities, especially for Māori females. We found declines in all-cause mortality rates, over time, for each ethnic group of interest. Ethnic mortality inequalities are generally stable or even falling in absolute terms, but have increased on a relative scale. The drivers of these inequalities in mortality are transitioning over time, away from CVD to cancer and diabetes; such transitions are likely in other countries, and warrant further research. To address these inequalities, policymakers need to enhance prevention

  10. Education-related inequity in healthcare with heterogeneous reporting of health

    PubMed Central

    d’Uva, Teresa Bago; Lindeboom, Maarten; O’Donnell, Owen; van Doorslaer, Eddy

    2011-01-01

    Summary Reliance on self-rated health to proxy medical need can bias estimation of education-related inequity in healthcare utilization. We correct this bias both by instrumenting self-rated health with objective health indicators and by purging self-rated health of reporting heterogeneity that is identified from health vignettes. Using data on elderly Europeans, we find that instrumenting self-rated health shifts the distribution of visits to a doctor in the direction of inequality favouring the better educated. There is a further, and typically larger, shift in the same direction when correction is made for the tendency of the better educated to rate their health more negatively. PMID:21938140

  11. Inequality, poverty and development.

    PubMed

    Ahluwalia, M S

    1976-12-01

    Dicussion explores the nature of the relationship between the distribution of income and the process of development on the basis of cross country data on income inequality. The results presented are based on a sample of 60 countries, including 40 developing countries, 14 developed countries, and 6 socialist countries. The approach adopted is essentially exploratory. Multivariate regression analysis was used to estimate cross country relationships between the income shares of different percentile groups and selected variables reflecting aspects of the development process which are likely to influence income inequality. The estimated equations are then used as a basis for broad generalizations about the relationship between income distribution and development. There was strong support for the proposition that relative inequaltiy increases substantially in the early stages of development, with a reversal of this tendency in the later stages. The propositions held whether the sample was restricted to developing countries or expanded to include developed and socialist countries. The process was most prolonged for the poorest group. There were a number of processes occurring "pari passu" with development which were correlated with income inequality and which can plausibly be interpreted as causal. These were intersectoral shifts in the structure of production, expansion in education attainment and skill level of the labor force; and reduction in the growth of population. The operation of these processes appeared to explain some of the improvement in income distribution observed in the later stages of development, but they did not serve to explain the marked deterioration observed in the earlier stages. The cross section results failed to support the stronger hypothesis that the deterioration in relative inequality reflected a prolonged absolute impoverishment of large sections of the population in the course of development. The cross country pattern showed average

  12. Income inequality and periodontal diseases in rich countries: an ecological cross-sectional study.

    PubMed

    Sabbah, Wael; Sheiham, Aubrey; Bernabé, Eduardo

    2010-10-01

    There are adverse effects of income inequality on morbidity and mortality. This relationship has not been adequately examined in relation to oral health. To examine the relationship between income inequality and periodontal disease in rich countries. Adults aged 35-44 years in 17 rich countries with populations of more than 2 million. National level data on periodontal disease, income inequality and absolute national income were collected from 17 rich countries with populations of more than 2m. Pearson and partial correlations were used to examine the relationship between income inequality and percentage of 35-44-year-old adults with periodontal pockets > or = 4 mm and > or = 6 mm deep, adjusting for absolute national income. Higher levels of income inequality were significantly associated with higher levels of periodontal disease, independently of absolute national income. Absolute income was not associated with levels of periodontal disease in these 17 rich countries. Income inequality appears to be an important contextual determinant of periodontal disease. The results emphasise the importance of relative income rather than absoluteincome in relation to periodontal disease in rich countries.

  13. Lies, Damned Lies, and Health Inequality Measurements

    PubMed Central

    Gerdtham, Ulf-G; Petrie, Dennis

    2015-01-01

    Measuring and monitoring socioeconomic health inequalities are critical for understanding the impact of policy decisions. However, the measurement of health inequality is far from value neutral, and one can easily present the measure that best supports one’s chosen conclusion or selectively exclude measures. Improving people’s understanding of the often implicit value judgments is therefore important to reduce the risk that researchers mislead or policymakers are misled. While the choice between relative and absolute inequality is already value laden, further complexities arise when, as is often the case, health variables have both a lower and upper bound, and thus can be expressed in terms of either attainments or shortfalls, such as for mortality/survival. We bring together the recent parallel discussions from epidemiology and health economics regarding health inequality measurement and provide a deeper understanding of the different value judgments within absolute and relative measures expressed both in attainments and shortfalls, by graphically illustrating both hypothetical and real examples. We show that relative measures in terms of attainments and shortfalls have distinct value judgments, highlighting that for health variables with two bounds the choice is no longer only between an absolute and a relative measure but between an absolute, an attainment- relative and a shortfall-relative one. We illustrate how these three value judgments can be combined onto a single graph which shows the rankings according to all three measures, and illustrates how the three measures provide ethical benchmarks against which to judge the difference in inequality between populations. PMID:26133019

  14. Explaining differences in education-related inequalities in health between urban and rural areas in Mongolia.

    PubMed

    Dorjdagva, Javkhlanbayar; Batbaatar, Enkhjargal; Dorjsuren, Bayarsaikhan; Kauhanen, Jussi

    2015-12-22

    After the socioeconomic transition in 1990, Mongolia has been experiencing demographic and epidemiologic transitions; however, there is lack of evidence on socioeconomic-related inequality in health across the country. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the education-related inequalities in adult population health in urban and rural areas of Mongolia in 2007/2008. This paper used a nationwide cross-sectional data, the Household Socio-Economic Survey 2007/2008, collected by the National Statistical Office. We employed the Erreygers' concentration index to assess the degree of education-related inequality in adult health in urban and rural areas. Our results suggest that a lower education level was associated with poor self-reported health. The concentration indices of physical limitation and chronic disease were significantly less than zero in both areas. On the other hand, ill-health was concentrated among the less educated groups. The decomposition results show education, economic activity status and income were the main contributors to education-related inequalities in physical limitation and chronic disease removing age-sex related contributions. Improving accessibility and quality of education, especially for the lower socioeconomic groups may reduce socioeconomic-related inequality in health in both rural and urban areas of Mongolia.

  15. Have health inequalities changed during childhood in the New Labour generation? Findings from the UK Millennium Cohort Study

    PubMed Central

    Rougeaux, Emeline; Hope, Steven; Law, Catherine; Pearce, Anna

    2017-01-01

    Objectives To examine how population-level socioeconomic health inequalities developed during childhood, for children born at the turn of the 21st century and who grew up with major initiatives to tackle health inequalities (under the New Labour Government). Setting The UK. Participants Singleton children in the Millennium Cohort Study at ages 3 (n=15 381), 5 (n=15 041), 7 (n=13 681) and 11 (n=13 112) years. Primary outcomes Relative (prevalence ratios (PR)) and absolute health inequalities (prevalence differences (PD)) were estimated in longitudinal models by socioeconomic circumstances (SEC; using highest maternal academic attainment, ranging from ‘no academic qualifications’ to ‘degree’ (baseline)). Three health outcomes were examined: overweight (including obesity), limiting long-standing illness (LLSI), and socio-emotional difficulties (SED). Results Relative and absolute inequalities in overweight, across the social gradient, emerged by age 5 and increased with age. By age 11, children with mothers who had no academic qualifications were considerably more likely to be overweight as compared with those with degree-educated mothers (PR=1.6 (95% CI 1.4 to 1.8), PD=12.9% (9.1% to 16.8%)). For LLSI, inequalities emerged by age 7 and remained at 11, but only for children whose mothers had no academic qualifications (PR=1.7 (1.3 to 2.3), PD=4.8% (2% to 7.5%)). Inequalities in SED (observed across the social gradient and at all ages) declined between 3 and 11, although remained large at 11 (eg, PR=2.4 (1.9 to 2.9), PD=13.4% (10.2% to 16.7%) comparing children whose mothers had no academic qualifications with those of degree-educated mothers). Conclusions Although health inequalities have been well documented in cross-sectional and trend data in the UK, it is less clear how they develop during childhood. We found that relative and absolute health inequalities persisted, and in some cases widened, for a cohort of children born at the turn of the century

  16. Equalities and Inequalities in the English Education System

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Scott, David; Scott, Ben

    2018-01-01

    This book is about social categories such as gender, race, dis-ability, intelligence, sexuality and class, as they are used in education. Knowledge of and about them and their effects is central to how we can understand society, equalities and inequalities within it, and educational relations. The evidence to support the claims being made in this…

  17. Using, Seeing, Feeling, and Doing Absolute Value for Deeper Understanding

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ponce, Gregorio A.

    2008-01-01

    Using sticky notes and number lines, a hands-on activity is shared that anchors initial student thinking about absolute value. The initial point of reference should help students successfully evaluate numeric problems involving absolute value. They should also be able to solve absolute value equations and inequalities that are typically found in…

  18. Socioeconomic inequalities and mortality trends in BRICS, 1990-2010.

    PubMed

    Mújica, Oscar J; Vázquez, Enrique; Duarte, Elisabeth C; Cortez-Escalante, Juan J; Molina, Joaquin; Barbosa da Silva Junior, Jarbas

    2014-06-01

    To explore the presence and magnitude of--and change in--socioeconomic and health inequalities between and within Brazil, the Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa--the countries known as BRICS--between 1990 and 2010. Comparable data on socioeconomic and health indicators, at both country and primary subnational levels, were obtained from publicly available sources. Health inequalities between and within countries were identified and summarized by using standard gap and gradient metrics. Four of the BRICS countries showed increases in both income level and income inequality between 1990 and 2010. The exception was Brazil, where income inequality decreased over the same period. Between-country inequalities in level of education and access to sanitation remained mostly unchanged but the largest between-country difference in mean life expectancy increased, from 9 years in 1990 to 20 years in 2010. Throughout the study period, there was disproportionality in the burden of disease between BRICS. However, the national infant mortality rate fell substantially over the study period in all five countries. In Brazil and China, the magnitude of subnational income-related inequalities in infant mortality, both absolute and relative, also decreased substantially. Despite the economic prosperity and general improvements in health seen since 1990, profound inequalities in health persist both within and between BRICS. However, the substantial reductions observed--within Brazil and China--in the inequalities in income-related levels of infant mortality are encouraging.

  19. Does Expanding Higher Education Reduce Income Inequality in Emerging Economy? Evidence from Pakistan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Qazi, Wasim; Raza, Syed Ali; Jawaid, Syed Tehseen; Karim, Mohd Zaini Abd

    2018-01-01

    This study investigates the impact of development in the higher education sector, on the Income Inequality in Pakistan, by using the annual time series data from 1973 to 2012. The autoregressive distributed lag bound testing co-integration approach confirms the existence of long-run relationship between higher education and income inequality.…

  20. [Significant Issues in Education - Law.] Inequality in Education, Number 17, June 1974.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hall, Leon; And Others

    This issue of Inequality in Education deviates from the usual format of in-depth discussion of a particular topic to include reports on a variety of significant issues in education-law. Leon Hall summarizes the numerous experiences he has had with Southern desegregated schools and students and relates his conclusions about how desegregation is…

  1. Might extended education decrease inequalities in health?-a meta-analysis.

    PubMed

    Ljungdahl, Sofia; Bremberg, Sven G

    2015-08-01

    Health is substantially worse in less educated people, and extended education might potentially improve their health. A prerequisite for a beneficial health effect of education is that the effect is absolute. An absolute effect of education means that the health effect comes about independently of any effect on other persons. A relative effect, on the other hand, only contributes to individual competitiveness in relation to others. Studies of natural experiments of extended compulsory education, and other educational-policy changes, provide an option for the analysis of absolute effects of education. Published studies, however, present conflicting results. A meta-analysis was performed of European studies where the health effects of extended compulsory or secondary level education on low-educated individuals were investigated. Twenty-two relevant publications were identified. The meta-analysis indicated statistically significant favourable effects of educational reforms on rates of mortality, self-reported poor health and obesity. The effects were, however, small, 1-4%. An educational reform that typically added one educational year in the least educated group was associated with a mean 2.1% reduction in mortality in men before age 40. This effect might be compared with the total educational gradients of mortality rates in Swedish men at ages 30-64. One extra year of education after compulsory education corresponds to a 41% reduction in mortality, which is 20 times more than the absolute effect of education found in this meta-analysis. Thus, it unlikely that extended compulsory education will substantially improve the health of the least educated individuals. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  2. Development, dependence, and gender inequality in the Third World.

    PubMed

    Marshall, S E

    1985-06-01

    While there has been much recent empirical investigation of the relationship between economic development, dependence, and income inequality, the issue of gender inequality has received less systematic attention. This exploratory study is a cross-sectional investigation of the effects of industrialization and investment, debt, and export dependency on levels of female education, and on rates of female economic participation, both absolutely and relative to male rates in 60 less developed countries. Although some of the macroeconomic indicators emerge as significant predictors of gender inequality in several of the regression equations, the most important explanatory variable is cultural region. These findings fail to lend strong empirical support to either the modernization or the dependency/world system theoretical perspective. The concluding discussion speculates on the interpretation of the research findings, offers some observations on the conceptual distinctions between class and gender stratification, and suggestions some directions for future research.

  3. Educational Inequality in Tasmania: Evidence and Explanations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rowan, Michael; Ramsay, Eleanor

    2018-01-01

    In this article, we map the extent of educational inequality within Tasmania, and between Tasmania and the rest of Australia, using "National Assessment Program--Literacy and Numeracy" (NAPLAN) and senior secondary attainment data. This analysis yields some surprising findings, showing the success of Tasmanian primary and high schools…

  4. Education and Social Change in China: Inequality in a Market Economy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Postiglione, Gerard A., Ed.

    2006-01-01

    Market reform, financial decentralization, and economic globalization have greatly accentuated China's social and regional inequalities. Education is expected to address these inequalities in a context of rapid social change, including the rise of an urban middle class, changed status of women, resurgence of ethnic identities, growing rural to…

  5. Educational inequalities in young-adult mortality between the 1990s and the 2000s: regional differences in Belgium.

    PubMed

    De Grande, Hannelore; Vandenheede, Hadewijch; Deboosere, Patrick

    2015-01-01

    This study addresses educational inequalities in young-adult mortality between the 1990s and the 2000s by comparing trends in the three different regions in Belgium stratified by sex. Social inequalities in mortality are of major concern to public health but are rarely studied at young ages. Substantial health differences have been found between the Flemish (FR) and Walloon region (WR) concerning (healthy) life expectancy and avoidable mortality, but little is known about regional differentials in young-adult mortality, and comparisons with the Brussels-Capital Region (BCR) have thus far never been made. Data are derived from record linkage between the Belgian censuses of 1991 and 2001 and register data on death and emigration for the periods 01/03/1991-01/03/1999 and 01/10/2001-01/10/2009. Analyses are restricted to young adults aged 25 to 34 years at the moment of each of the censuses. Absolute (directly standardized mortality rates (ASMRs)) and relative (mortality rate ratio using Poisson regression) measures were calculated. There is a significant drop in young-adult mortality between the 1990s and the 2000s in all regions and both sexes, with the strongest decline in the BCR (e.g. ASMR of men declined from 165.6 [151.1-180.1] per 100,000 person years to 73.8 [88.3-98.3]). The mortality rates remain highest in the WR in the 2000s Between the 1990s and the 2000s, a remarkable change in the educational distribution occurred as well, with much lower proportions of primary educated in all regions in the 2000s in favour of higher proportions in all other educational levels, especially in higher education. All educational groups show lower mortality over time, except for lower educated men in the FR. There is a positive evolution towards lower mortality among the young-adult Belgian population. The WR trails behind in this evolution, which calls for tailored preventive actions. Educational inequalities are marked in all regions and time periods. A more general

  6. Educational inequalities in smoking: the role of initiation versus quitting.

    PubMed

    Maralani, Vida

    2013-05-01

    The existing literature on educational inequalities in adult smoking has focused extensively on differences in current smoking and quitting, rather than on differences in never smoking regularly (initiation) by education in the adult population. Knowing the relative contribution of initiation versus quitting is critical for understanding the mechanisms that produce educational gradients in smoking because initiation and quitting occur at different points in the life course. Using data from 31 waves of the U.S. National Health Interview Survey (N = 587,174), the analyses show the relative likelihood of being a never versus former smoker by education, sex, and age from 1966 to 2010 and for birth cohorts from 1920 to 1979. The analyses also describe differences in the cumulative probability of quitting over the life course, and the role of initiation versus quitting in producing educational gaps in smoking. The results show that educational gaps in never smoking explain the bulk of the educational inequality in adult smoking. Differences in former smoking play a small and decreasing role in producing these gaps. This is true across the life course, whether measured at age 25 or age 50, and for both men and women. While the prevalence and age patterns of former smoking by education converge across birth cohorts, differences in never smoking by education increase dramatically. At the population level, educational gaps in adult smoking are produced by the combination of inequalities in initiation and quitting, with differences in initiation playing a larger role in producing the observed gaps. The portion of the gap explained by differences in quitting is itself a function of educational differences in initiation. Thus, educational gradients in adult smoking are tethered to experiences in adolescence. These findings have important implications for both understanding and addressing disparities in this important health behavior. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights

  7. Ethnicity and Education in China and Vietnam: Discursive Formations of Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    DeJaeghere, Joan; Wu, Xinyi; Vu, Lisa

    2015-01-01

    This article aims to understand how ethnicity is discursively framed in national policies in China and Vietnam and argues that policy discourses affect how the "problem" of ethnicity and educational inequalities is framed and how these inequalities can be addressed. The analysis shows how both Marxist and market-economy governing…

  8. Degrees of Inequality: Culture, Class, and Gender in American Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mullen, Ann L.

    2010-01-01

    "Degrees of Inequality" reveals the powerful patterns of social inequality in American higher education by analyzing how the social background of students shapes nearly every facet of the college experience. Even as the most prestigious institutions claim to open their doors to students from diverse backgrounds, class disparities remain.…

  9. Educational Expansion and Inequality in Taiwan and the Czech Republic

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Michael; Tsai, Shu-Ling; Mateju, Petr; Huang, Min-Hsiung

    2016-01-01

    This article presents a comparative analysis of educational inequality by family background and gender in Taiwan and the Czech Republic, which have both experienced substantial educational expansion in the last half-century under different educational systems. We highlight the specific institutional histories of both countries and examine the role…

  10. Comparative appraisal of educational inequalities in overweight and obesity among adults in 19 European countries.

    PubMed

    Roskam, Albert-Jan R; Kunst, Anton E; Van Oyen, Herman; Demarest, Stefaan; Klumbiene, Jurate; Regidor, Enrique; Helmert, Uwe; Jusot, Florence; Dzurova, Dagmar; Mackenbach, Johan P

    2010-04-01

    In Western societies, a lower educational level is often associated with a higher prevalence of overweight and obesity. However, there may be important international differences in the strength and direction of this relationship, perhaps in respect of differing levels of socio-economic development. We aimed to describe educational inequalities in overweight and obesity across Europe, and to explore the contribution of level of socio-economic development to cross-national differences in educational inequalities in overweight and obese adults in Europe. Cross-sectional data, based on self-reports, were derived from national health interview surveys from 19 European countries (N = 127 018; age range = 25-44 years). Height and weight data were used to calculate the body mass index (BMI). Multivariate regression analysis was employed to measure educational inequalities in overweight and obesity, based on BMI. Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita was used as a measure of level of socio-economic development. Inverse educational gradients in overweight and obesity (i.e. higher education, less overweight and obesity) are a generalized phenomenon among European men and even more so among women. Baltic and eastern European men were the exceptions, with weak positive associations between education and overweight and obesity. Educational inequalities in overweight and obesity were largest in Mediterranean women. A 10 000-euro increase in GDP was related to a 3% increase in overweight and obesity for low-educated men, but a 4% decrease for high-educated men. No associations with GDP were observed for women. In most European countries, people of lower educational attainment are now most likely to be overweight or obese. An increasing level of socio-economic development was associated with an emergence of inequalities among men, and a persistence of these inequalities among women.

  11. Decomposing Educational Inequalities in Child Mortality: A Temporal Trend Analysis of Access to Water and Sanitation in Peru

    PubMed Central

    Bohra, Tasneem; Benmarhnia, Tarik; McKinnon, Britt; Kaufman, Jay S.

    2017-01-01

    Previous studies of inequality in health and mortality have largely focused on income-based inequality. Maternal education plays an important role in determining access to water and sanitation, and inequalities in child mortality arising due to differential access, especially in low- and middle-income countries such as Peru. This article aims to explain education-related inequalities in child mortality in Peru using a regression-based decomposition of the concentration index of child mortality. The analysis combines a concentration index created along a cumulative distribution of the Demographic and Health Surveys sample ranked according to maternal education, and decomposition measures the contribution of water and sanitation to educational inequalities in child mortality. We observed a large education-related inequality in child mortality and access to water and sanitation. There is a need for programs and policies in child health to focus on ensuring equity and to consider the educational stratification of the population to target the most disadvantaged segments of the population. PMID:27821698

  12. Trends in educational differentials in suicide mortality between 1993-2006 in Korea.

    PubMed

    Lee, Weon Young; Khang, Young-Ho; Noh, Manegseok; Ryu, Jae-In; Son, Mia; Hong, Yeon-Pyo

    2009-08-31

    This study aims to examine how inequalities in suicide by education changed during and after macroeconomic restructuring following the economic crisis of 1997 in South Korea. Using Korea's 1995, 2000, and 2005 census data aggregately linked to mortality data (1993-2006), relative and absolute differentials in suicide mortality by education were calculated by gender and age among Korean population aged 35 and over. Average annual suicide mortality rates have steadily increased from 1993-1997 to 2003-2006 in almost all sociodemographic groups stratified by gender, age, and education. Based on the relative index of inequality (RII) and slope index of inequality (SII), educational differentials in suicide mortality generally increased over time in men and women aged 45 years+. Although RII did not increase with year among men and women aged 35 - 44 years, SII showed a significantly increasing trend in this age group. These worsening absolute inequalities in suicide mortality indicate that the governmental suicide prevention policy should be directed toward socially disadvantaged groups of the Korean population.

  13. Trends in Educational Differentials in Suicide Mortality between 1993 - 2006 in Korea

    PubMed Central

    Lee, Weon Young; Khang, Young-Ho; Noh, Manegseok; Ryu, Jae-In; Son, Mia

    2009-01-01

    Purpose This study aims to examine how inequalities in suicide by education changed during and after macroeconomic restructuring following the economic crisis of 1997 in South Korea. Materials and Methods Using Korea's 1995, 2000, and 2005 census data aggregately linked to mortality data (1993 - 2006), relative and absolute differentials in suicide mortality by education were calculated by gender and age among Korean population aged 35 and over. Results Average annual suicide mortality rates have steadily increased from 1993 - 1997 to 2003 - 2006 in almost all sociodemographic groups stratified by gender, age, and education. Based on the relative index of inequality (RII) and slope index of inequality (SII), educational differentials in suicide mortality generally increased over time in men and women aged 45 years +. Although RII did not increase with year among men and women aged 35 - 44 years, SII showed a significantly increasing trend in this age group. Conclusion These worsening absolute inequalities in suicide mortality indicate that the governmental suicide prevention policy should be directed toward socially disadvantaged groups of the Korean population. PMID:19718395

  14. Educational inequalities in general and mental health: differential contribution of physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption and diet.

    PubMed

    Kurtze, Nanna; Eikemo, Terje A; Kamphuis, Carlijn B M

    2013-04-01

    Behavioural, material and psychosocial risk factors may explain educational inequalities in general health. To what extent these risk factors have similar or different contributions to educational inequalities in mental health is unknown. Data were derived from the Norwegian Survey of Level of Living from 2005, comprising 5791 respondents aged ≥ 25 years. The study objectives were addressed by means of a series of logistic regression analyses in which we examined: (i) educational inequalities in self-reported general and mental health; (ii) the associations between behavioural, material and psychosocial risk factors and general and mental health, controlled for sex, age and education; and (iii) the contribution of risk factors to the observed health gradients. The lower educated were more likely to be in poor health [odds ratio (OR): 3.46 (95% confidence interval, CI: 2.84-4.21)] and to be in poor mental health [OR: 1.41 (95% CI: 1.12-1.78)] than the highest educated. The joint contribution of behavioural, material and psychosocial risk factors explained all the variations of mental health inequalities, whereas these were able to explain ~40% of the inequalities in general health. Both behavioural and material risk factors contributed substantially to the explanation of general and mental health inequalities, whereas the psychosocial risk factor (i.e. having close persons to communicate with) only seemed to make a larger difference for the explanation of mental health inequalities. Policies and interventions to reduce health inequalities should have a broad focus. Combined strategies should be applied to improve physical activity, decrease smoking and improve material and psychosocial conditions among lower educated groups, to achieve the true potential of reducing inequalities in both general and mental health.

  15. Educational Inequality in the United States: Can We Reverse the Tide?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gamoran, Adam; Bruch, Sarah K.

    2017-01-01

    Educational inequality is a pressing problem in much of the English-speaking world and especially in the United States, as the last three decades have witnessed rising inequality on several measures. This is an appropriate subject for a special issue commemorating the contributions of David Raffe, whose career of scholarship greatly enhanced our…

  16. Intended and Unintended Consequences of Educational Technology on Social Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tawfik, Andrew A.; Reeves, Todd D.; Stich, Amy

    2016-01-01

    While much has been written in the field of educational technology regarding educational excellence and efficiency, less attention has been paid to issues of equity. Along these lines, the field of educational technology often does not address key equity problems such as academic achievement and attainment gaps, and inequality of educational…

  17. Globalization, Educational Targeting, and Stable Inequalities: A Comparative Analysis of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rambla, Xavier

    2006-05-01

    The present study analyzes educational targeting in Argentina, Brazil and Chile from a sociological point of view. It shows that a `logic of induction' has become the vehicle for anti-poverty education strategies meant to help targeted groups improve on their own. The analysis explores the influence of the global educational agenda, the empirical connection between the logic of induction and the mechanism of emulation, and the territorial aspects of educational inequalities. Emulation plays a main role inasmuch as the logic of induction leads targeted groups to compare their adverse situation with more privileged groups, which actually legitimizes inequalities. A brief statistical summary completes the study, showing that educational inequality has remained unchanged as far as urban-rural ratios (in Brazil and Chile) and regional disparities (in all three countries) are concerned.

  18. Socioeconomic inequality in the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries: results from the World Health Survey.

    PubMed

    Hosseinpoor, Ahmad Reza; Bergen, Nicole; Mendis, Shanthi; Harper, Sam; Verdes, Emese; Kunst, Anton; Chatterji, Somnath

    2012-06-22

    Noncommunicable diseases are an increasing health concern worldwide, but particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This study quantified and compared education- and wealth-based inequalities in the prevalence of five noncommunicable diseases (angina, arthritis, asthma, depression and diabetes) and comorbidity in low- and middle-income country groups. Using 2002-04 World Health Survey data from 41 low- and middle-income countries, the prevalence estimates of angina, arthritis, asthma, depression, diabetes and comorbidity in adults aged 18 years or above are presented for wealth quintiles and five education levels, by sex and country income group. Symptom-based classification was used to determine angina, arthritis, asthma and depression rates, and diabetes diagnoses were self-reported. Socioeconomic inequalities according to wealth and education were measured absolutely, using the slope index of inequality, and relatively, using the relative index of inequality. Wealth and education inequalities were more pronounced in the low-income country group than the middle-income country group. Both wealth and education were inversely associated with angina, arthritis, asthma, depression and comorbidity prevalence, with strongest inequalities reported for angina, asthma and comorbidity. Diabetes prevalence was positively associated with wealth and, to a lesser extent, education. Adjustments for confounding variables tended to decrease the magnitude of the inequality. Noncommunicable diseases are not necessarily diseases of the wealthy, and showed unequal distribution across socioeconomic groups in low- and middle-income country groups. Disaggregated research is warranted to assess the impact of individual noncommunicable diseases according to socioeconomic indicators.

  19. Social Inequality and Access to Higher Education in Russia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Konstantinovskiy, David L.

    2012-01-01

    This article analyses research on social inequality and access to higher education in Russia. It argues that the myth about equality of life chances, as with certain other myths, was an important part of the Soviet ideology. However, children from privileged groups traditionally received the education and professional training which were most…

  20. Inequities in Computer Education Due to Gender, Race, and Socioeconomic Status.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Urban, Cynthia M.

    Recent reports have revealed that inequalities exist between males and females, racial minorities and whites, and rich and poor in accessibility to and use of computers. This study reviews the research in the field of computer-based education to determine the extent of and reasons for these inequities. The annotated research articles are arranged…

  1. Socioeconomic inequalities and changes in oral health behaviors among Brazilian adolescents from 2009 to 2012

    PubMed Central

    Freire, Maria do Carmo Matias; Jordão, Lidia Moraes Ribeiro; Malta, Deborah Carvalho; Andrade, Silvânia Suely Caribé de Araújo; Peres, Marco Aurelio

    2015-01-01

    OBJECTIVE To analyze oral health behaviors changes over time in Brazilian adolescents concerning maternal educational inequalities. METHODS Data from the Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde do Escolar (Brazilian National School Health Survey) were analyzed. The sample was composed of 60,973 and 61,145 students from 26 Brazilian state capitals and the Federal District in 2009 and 2012, respectively. The analyzed factors were oral health behaviors (toothbrushing frequency, sweets consumption, soft drink consumption, and cigarette experimentation) and sociodemographics (age, sex, race, type of school and maternal schooling). Oral health behaviors and sociodemographic factors in the two years were compared (Rao-Scott test) and relative and absolute measures of socioeconomic inequalities in health were estimated (slope index of inequality and relative concentration index), using maternal education as a socioeconomic indicator, expressed in number of years of study (> 11; 9-11; ≤ 8). RESULTS Results from 2012, when compared with those from 2009, for all maternal education categories, showed that the proportion of people with low toothbrushing frequency increased, and that consumption of sweets and soft drinks and cigarette experimentation decreased. In private schools, positive slope index of inequality and relative concentration index indicated higher soft drink consumption in 2012 and higher cigarette experimentation in both years among students who reported greater maternal schooling, with no significant change in inequalities. In public schools, negative slope index of inequality and relative concentration index indicated higher soft drink consumption among students who reported lower maternal schooling in both years, with no significant change overtime. The positive relative concentration index indicated inequality in 2009 for cigarette experimentation, with a higher prevalence among students who reported greater maternal schooling. There were no inequalities for

  2. Changes in contribution of causes of death to socioeconomic mortality inequalities in Korean adults.

    PubMed

    Jung-Choi, Kyunghee; Khang, Young Ho; Cho, Hong Jun

    2011-11-01

    This study aimed to analyze long-term trends in the contribution of each cause of death to socioeconomic inequalities in all-cause mortality among Korean adults. Data were collected from death certificates between 1990 and 2004 and from censuses in 1990, 1995, and 2000. Age-standardized death rates by gender were produced according to education as the socioeconomic position indicator, and the slope index of inequality was calculated to evaluate the contribution of each cause of death to socioeconomic inequalities in all-cause mortality. Among adults aged 25-44, accidental injuries with transport accidents, suicide, liver disease and cerebrovascular disease made relatively large contributions to socioeconomic inequalities in all-cause mortality, while, among adults aged 45-64, liver disease, cerebrovascular disease, transport accidents, liver cancer, and lung cancer did so. Ischemic heart disease, a very important contributor to socioeconomic mortality inequality in North America and Western Europe, showed a very low contribution (less than 3%) in both genders of Koreans. Considering the contributions of different causes of death to absolute mortality inequalities, establishing effective strategies to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in mortality is warranted.

  3. Neonatal health in Nepal: analysis of absolute and relative inequalities and impact of current efforts to reduce neonatal mortality

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Nepal has made substantial progress in reducing under-five mortality and is on track to achieve Millennium Development Goal 4, but advances in neonatal health are less encouraging. The objectives of this study were to assess relative and absolute inequalities in neonatal mortality over time, and to review experience with major programs to promote neonatal health. Methods Using four nationally representative surveys conducted in 1996, 2001, 2006 and 2011, we calculated neonatal mortality rates for Nepal and for population groups based on child sex, geographical and socio-economic variables using a true cohort log probability approach. Inequalities based on different variables and years were assessed using rate differences (rd) and rate ratios (rr); time trends in neonatal mortality were measured using the annual rate of reduction. Through literature searches and expert consultation, information on Nepalese policies and programs implemented since 1990 and directly or indirectly attempting to reduce neonatal mortality was compiled. Data on timeline, coverage and effectiveness were extracted for major programs. Results The annual rate of reduction for neonatal mortality between 1996 and 2011 (2.8 percent per annum) greatly lags behind the achievements in under-five and infant mortality, and varies across population groups. For the year 2011, stark absolute and relative inequalities in neonatal mortality exist in relation to wealth status (rd = 21.4, rr = 2.2); these are less pronounced for other measures of socio-economic status, child sex and urban–rural residence, ecological and development region. Among many efforts to promote child and maternal health, three established programs and two pilot programs emerged as particularly relevant to reducing neonatal mortality. While these were designed based on national and international evidence, information about coverage of different population groups and effectiveness is limited. Conclusion Neonatal

  4. Neonatal health in Nepal: analysis of absolute and relative inequalities and impact of current efforts to reduce neonatal mortality.

    PubMed

    Paudel, Deepak; Shrestha, Ishwar B; Siebeck, Matthias; Rehfuess, Eva A

    2013-12-28

    Nepal has made substantial progress in reducing under-five mortality and is on track to achieve Millennium Development Goal 4, but advances in neonatal health are less encouraging. The objectives of this study were to assess relative and absolute inequalities in neonatal mortality over time, and to review experience with major programs to promote neonatal health. Using four nationally representative surveys conducted in 1996, 2001, 2006 and 2011, we calculated neonatal mortality rates for Nepal and for population groups based on child sex, geographical and socio-economic variables using a true cohort log probability approach. Inequalities based on different variables and years were assessed using rate differences (rd) and rate ratios (rr); time trends in neonatal mortality were measured using the annual rate of reduction. Through literature searches and expert consultation, information on Nepalese policies and programs implemented since 1990 and directly or indirectly attempting to reduce neonatal mortality was compiled. Data on timeline, coverage and effectiveness were extracted for major programs. The annual rate of reduction for neonatal mortality between 1996 and 2011 (2.8 percent per annum) greatly lags behind the achievements in under-five and infant mortality, and varies across population groups. For the year 2011, stark absolute and relative inequalities in neonatal mortality exist in relation to wealth status (rd = 21.4, rr = 2.2); these are less pronounced for other measures of socio-economic status, child sex and urban-rural residence, ecological and development region. Among many efforts to promote child and maternal health, three established programs and two pilot programs emerged as particularly relevant to reducing neonatal mortality. While these were designed based on national and international evidence, information about coverage of different population groups and effectiveness is limited. Neonatal mortality varies greatly by socio

  5. Educational Inequalities and the Expansion of Postsecondary Education in Brazil, from 1982 to 2006

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Collares, Ana Cristina Murta

    2010-01-01

    Brazil has experienced a broad expansion of education in the last few decades, but inequalities in educational access are still high for people of different socioeconomic statuses as well as by gender and race. Using data that covers higher education expansion from 1982 to 2006 in Brazil, this dissertation investigates the consequences of this…

  6. Educational inequalities in mortality and associated risk factors: German--versus French-speaking Switzerland.

    PubMed

    Faeh, David; Bopp, Matthias

    2010-09-22

    Between the French- and German-speaking areas of Switzerland, there are distinct differences in mortality, similar to those between Germany and France. Assessing corresponding inequalities may elucidate variations in mortality and risk factors, thereby uncovering public health potential. Our aim was to analyze educational inequalities in all-cause and cause-specific mortality in the two Swiss regions and to compare this with inequalities in behavioural risk factors and self-rated health. The Swiss National Cohort, a longitudinal census-based record linkage study, provided mortality and survival time data (3.5 million individuals, 40-79 years, 261,314 deaths, 1990-2000). The Swiss Health Survey 1992/93 provided cross-sectional data on risk factors. Inequalities were calculated as percentage of change in mortality rate (survival time, hazard ratio) or risk factor prevalence (odds ratio) per year of additional education using multivariable Cox and logistic regression. Significant inequalities in mortality were found for all causes of death in men and for most causes in women. Inequalities were largest in men for causes related to smoking and alcohol use and in women for circulatory diseases. Gradients in all-cause mortality were more pronounced in younger and middle-aged men, especially in German-speaking Switzerland. Mortality inequalities tended to be larger in German-speaking Switzerland whereas inequalities in associated risk factors were generally more pronounced in French-speaking Switzerland. With respect to inequalities in mortality and associated risk factors, we found characteristic differences between German- and French-speaking Switzerland, some of which followed gradients described in Europe. These differences only partially reflected inequalities in associated risk factors.

  7. Full Service Extended Schools and Educational Inequality in Urban Contexts--New Opportunities for Progress?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Raffo, Carlo; Dyson, Alan

    2007-01-01

    This paper examines the extent to which the UK government's full service extended schools programme has the capacity to ameliorate educational inequality in urban contexts. It starts by examining a variety of explanatory narratives for educational inequality in urban contexts in the UK and suggests that the dynamics of social exclusion created by…

  8. Decomposing Educational Inequalities in Child Mortality: A Temporal Trend Analysis of Access to Water and Sanitation in Peru.

    PubMed

    Bohra, Tasneem; Benmarhnia, Tarik; McKinnon, Britt; Kaufman, Jay S

    2017-01-11

    Previous studies of inequality in health and mortality have largely focused on income-based inequality. Maternal education plays an important role in determining access to water and sanitation, and inequalities in child mortality arising due to differential access, especially in low- and middle-income countries such as Peru. This article aims to explain education-related inequalities in child mortality in Peru using a regression-based decomposition of the concentration index of child mortality. The analysis combines a concentration index created along a cumulative distribution of the Demographic and Health Surveys sample ranked according to maternal education, and decomposition measures the contribution of water and sanitation to educational inequalities in child mortality. We observed a large education-related inequality in child mortality and access to water and sanitation. There is a need for programs and policies in child health to focus on ensuring equity and to consider the educational stratification of the population to target the most disadvantaged segments of the population. © The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

  9. Educational inequalities in hospital care for mortally ill patients in Norway.

    PubMed

    Elstad, Jon Ivar

    2018-02-01

    Health care should be allocated fairly, irrespective of patients' social standing. Previous research suggests that highly educated patients are prioritized in Norwegian hospitals. This study examines this contentious issue by a design which addresses two methodological challenges. Control for differences in medical needs is approximated by analysing patients who died from same causes of death. Area fixed effects are used for avoiding that observed educational inequalities are contaminated by geographical differences. Men and women who died 2009-2011 at age 55-94 were examined ( N=103,000) with register data from Statistics Norway and the Norwegian Patient Registry. Educational differences in quantity of hospital-based medical care during the 12-24 months before death were analysed, separate for main causes of death. Multivariate negative binomial regression models were estimated, with fixed effects for residential areas. High-educated patients who died from cancers had significantly more outpatient consultations at somatic hospitals than low-educated patients during an average observation period of 18 months prior to death. Similar, but weaker, educational inequalities appeared for outpatient visits for patients whose deaths were due to other causes. Also, educational inequalities in number of hospital admissions were marked for those who died from cancers, but insignificant for patients who died from other causes. Even when medical needs are similar for mortally ill patients, those with high education tend to receive more medical services in Norwegian somatic hospitals than patients with low education. The roles played by physicians and patients in generating these patterns should be explored further.

  10. Education, Inequality and Erosion of Social Cohesion

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Green, Andy

    2009-01-01

    Income inequality has been rising in Britain for two decades and wealth is also more unequally distributed now than when New Labour first came to power. Various factors have contributed to this, including education which, according to the PISA 2006 data, has more unequal outcomes in the UK than in all but 2 of the 29 tested countries. Comparative…

  11. Interrogating Institutionalized Establishments: Urban-Rural Inequalities in China's Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Li, Mei; Yang, Rui

    2013-01-01

    China's urban-rural disparities are a fundamental source of China's overall educational inequalities. This article addresses the issue with data collected through interviews with members at various Chinese higher education institutions. It interrogates China's current policies together with the socio-political institutional arrangements that…

  12. Income-related and educational inequality in small-for-gestational age and preterm birth in Denmark and Finland 1987-2003.

    PubMed

    Mortensen, Laust H; Lauridsen, Jørgen T; Diderichsen, Finn; Kaplan, George A; Gissler, Mika; Andersen, Anne-Marie N

    2010-02-01

    In this paper, we examine income- and education-related inequality in small-for-gestational age (SGA) and preterm birth in Denmark and Finland from 1987 to 2003 using concentration indexes (CIXs). From the national medical birth registries we gathered information on all births from 1987 to 2003. Information on highest completed maternal education and household income in the year preceding birth of the offspring was obtained for 1,012,400 births in Denmark and 499,390 in Finland. We then calculated CIXs for income- and education-related inequality in SGA and preterm birth. The mean household income-related inequality in SGA was -0.04 (95% confidence interval: -0.05, -0.04) in Denmark and -0.03 (-0.04, -0.02) in Finland. The maternal education-related inequality in SGA was -0.08 (-0.10, -0.06) in Denmark and -0.07 (-0.08, -0.06) in Finland. The income-related inequality in preterm birth was -0.03 (-0.03, -0.02) in Denmark and -0.03 (-0.04, -0.02) in Finland. The education-related inequality in preterm birth was -0.05 (-0.07, -0.04) in Denmark and -0.04 (-0.05, -0.03) in Finland. In Denmark, the income-related and education-related inequity in SGA increased over time. In Finland, the income-related inequality in SGA birth increased slightly, while education-related inequalities remained stable. Inequalities in preterm birth decreased over time in both countries. Denmark and Finland are examples of nations with free prenatal care and publicly financed obstetric care of high quality. During the period of study there were macroeconomic shocks affecting both countries. However, only small income- and education-related inequalities in SGA and preterm births during the period were observed.

  13. Educational inequalities in mortality are larger at low levels of income: A register-based study on premature mortality among 2.3 million Swedes, 2006-2009.

    PubMed

    Östergren, Olof

    2018-08-01

    Education develops skills that help individuals use available material resources more efficiently. When material resources are scarce, each decision becomes comparatively more important. Education may also protect from health-related income decline, since the highly educated tend to work in occupations with lower physical demands. Educational inequalities in health may, therefore, be more pronounced at lower levels of income. The aim of this study is to assess whether the shape of the income gradient in premature mortality depends on the level of education. Total population data on education, income and mortality was obtained by linking several Swedish registers. Income was defined as five-year average disposable household income for ages 35-64 and mortality follow-up covered the period 2006-2009. The final population comprised 2.3 million individuals, 6.2 million person-years and 14,362 deaths. Income was modeled using splines in order to allow variation in the functional form of the association across educational categories. Poisson regression with robust standard errors was used. The curvilinear shape of the association between income and mortality was more pronounced among those with a low education. Both absolute and relative educational inequalities in premature mortality tended to be larger at low levels of income. The greatest income differences in mortality were observed for those with a low education and the smallest for the highly educated. Education and income interact as predictors of mortality. Education is a more important factor for health when access to material resources is limited.

  14. Education policies and health inequalities: evidence from changes in the distribution of Body Mass Index in France, 1981-2003.

    PubMed

    Etile, Fabrice

    2014-03-01

    This paper contributes to the debate over the effectiveness of education policies in reducing overall health inequalities as compared to public health actions directed at the less-educated. Recentered Influence Function (RIF) regressions are used to decompose the contribution of education to the changing distribution of Body Mass Index (BMI) in France, between 1981 and 2003, into a composition effect (the shift in population education due to a massive educational expansion), and a structure effect (a changing educational gradient in BMI). Educational expansion has reduced overall BMI inequality by 3.4% for women and 2.3% for men. However, the structure effect on its own has produced a 10.9% increase in overall inequality for women, due to a steeper education gradient starting from the second quartile of the distribution. This structure effect on overall inequality is also large (7.6%) for men, albeit insignificant as it remains concentrated in the last decile. Educational expansion policies can thus reduce overall BMI inequalities; but attention must still be paid to the BMI gradient in education even for policies addressing overall rather than socioeconomic health inequalities. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Have health inequalities changed during childhood in the New Labour generation? Findings from the UK Millennium Cohort Study.

    PubMed

    Rougeaux, Emeline; Hope, Steven; Law, Catherine; Pearce, Anna

    2017-01-11

    To examine how population-level socioeconomic health inequalities developed during childhood, for children born at the turn of the 21st century and who grew up with major initiatives to tackle health inequalities (under the New Labour Government). The UK. Singleton children in the Millennium Cohort Study at ages 3 (n=15 381), 5 (n=15 041), 7 (n=13 681) and 11 (n=13 112) years. Relative (prevalence ratios (PR)) and absolute health inequalities (prevalence differences (PD)) were estimated in longitudinal models by socioeconomic circumstances (SEC; using highest maternal academic attainment, ranging from 'no academic qualifications' to 'degree' (baseline)). Three health outcomes were examined: overweight (including obesity), limiting long-standing illness (LLSI), and socio-emotional difficulties (SED). Relative and absolute inequalities in overweight, across the social gradient, emerged by age 5 and increased with age. By age 11, children with mothers who had no academic qualifications were considerably more likely to be overweight as compared with those with degree-educated mothers (PR=1.6 (95% CI 1.4 to 1.8), PD=12.9% (9.1% to 16.8%)). For LLSI, inequalities emerged by age 7 and remained at 11, but only for children whose mothers had no academic qualifications (PR=1.7 (1.3 to 2.3), PD=4.8% (2% to 7.5%)). Inequalities in SED (observed across the social gradient and at all ages) declined between 3 and 11, although remained large at 11 (eg, PR=2.4 (1.9 to 2.9), PD=13.4% (10.2% to 16.7%) comparing children whose mothers had no academic qualifications with those of degree-educated mothers). Although health inequalities have been well documented in cross-sectional and trend data in the UK, it is less clear how they develop during childhood. We found that relative and absolute health inequalities persisted, and in some cases widened, for a cohort of children born at the turn of the century. Further research examining and comparing the pathways through which SECs

  16. Relative health effects of education, socioeconomic status and domestic gender inequity in Sweden: a cohort study.

    PubMed

    Phillips, Susan P; Hammarström, Anne

    2011-01-01

    Limited existing research on gender inequities suggests that for men workplace atmosphere shapes wellbeing while women are less susceptible to socioeconomic or work status but vulnerable to home inequities. Using the 2007 Northern Swedish Cohort (n = 773) we identified relative contributions of perceived gender inequities in relationships, financial strain, and education to self-reported health to determine whether controlling for sex, examining interactions between sex and other social variables, or sex-disaggregating data yielded most information about sex differences. Men had lower education but also less financial strain, and experienced less gender inequity. Overall, low education and financial strain detracted from health. However, sex-disaggregated data showed this to be true for women, whereas for men only gender inequity at home affected health. In the relatively egalitarian Swedish environment where women more readily enter all work arenas and men often provide parenting, traditional primacy of the home environment (for women) and the work environment (for men) in shaping health is reversing such that perceived domestic gender inequity has a significant health impact on men, while for women only education and financial strain are contributory. These outcomes were identified only when data were sex-disaggregated.

  17. Beyond the Birds and the Bees: Learning Inequality through Sexuality Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Connell, Catherine; Elliott, Sinikka

    2009-01-01

    This article reviews the literature on the roles that schools, peers, and parents play in young people's sexuality education. We argue that the sexuality education children receive is far from just the facts; rather, it is an education in the maintenance of inequality. Sexuality education, as it is currently conceived, includes implicit and…

  18. Portrait of socio-economic inequality in childhood morbidity and mortality over time, Québec, 1990-2005.

    PubMed

    Barry, Mamadou S; Auger, Nathalie; Burrows, Stephanie

    2012-06-01

    To determine the age and cause groups contributing to absolute and relative socio-economic inequalities in paediatric mortality, hospitalisation and tumour incidence over time. Deaths (n= 9559), hospitalisations (n= 834,932) and incident tumours (n= 4555) were obtained for five age groupings (<1, 1-4, 5-9, 10-14, 15-19 years) and four periods (1990-1993, 1994-1997, 1998-2001, 2002-2005) for Québec, Canada. Age- and cause-specific morbidity and mortality rates for males and females were calculated across socio-economic status decile based on a composite deprivation score for 89 urban communities. Absolute and relative measures of inequality were computed for each age and cause. Mortality and morbidity rates tended to decrease over time, as did absolute and relative socio-economic inequalities for most (but not all) causes and age groups, although precision was low. Socio-economic inequalities persisted in the last period and were greater on the absolute scale for mortality and hospitalisation in early childhood, and on the relative scale for mortality in adolescents. Four causes (respiratory, digestive, infectious, genito-urinary diseases) contributed to the majority of absolute inequality in hospitalisation (males 85%, females 98%). Inequalities were not pronounced for cause-specific mortality and not apparent for tumour incidence. Socio-economic inequalities in Québec tended to narrow for most but not all outcomes. Absolute socio-economic inequalities persisted for children <10 years, and several causes were responsible for the majority of inequality in hospitalisation. Public health policies and prevention programs aiming to reduce socio-economic inequalities in paediatric health should account for trends that differ across age and cause of disease. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health © 2011 Paediatrics and Child Health Division (Royal Australasian College of Physicians).

  19. Increasing educational inequalities in self-rated health in Brazil, 1998-2013.

    PubMed

    Andrade, Flavia Cristina Drumond; Mehta, Jeenal Deepak

    2018-01-01

    The objectives of this study are to analyze the associations between educational levels and poor self-rated health (SRH) among adults in Brazil and to assess trends in the prevalence of poor self-rated health across educational groups between 1998 and 2013. Individual-level data came from the 1998, 2003 and 2008 Brazilian National Household Survey and the 2013 National Health Survey. We estimate prevalence rates of poor SRH by education. Using multivariable regressions, we assess the associations between educational levels and poor self-rated health. We use these regressions to predict the estimated ratios between the prevalence rates of those in low vs. high education in order to assess if relative changes in poor SRH have narrowed over time. Finally, we tested for statistically significant time trends in adult chronic disease inequalities by education. Results indicate a clear educational gradient in poor SRH. Prevalence ratios show that Brazilian adults with no education have levels of poor SRH that are 7 to 9 times higher than those with some college or more. The difference between those with lowest and highest education increased from 1998 to 2013. Compared to those with no education, there were increases in the prevalence of poor SRH among those with primary and secondary incomplete as well as among those with secondary complete in 2008 and 2013. In conclusion, there is a positive association between poor SRH and low education. Brazil has many social and geographic inequalities in health. Even though educational levels are increasing, there is no improvement in the general subjective health of Brazilians. Health inequalities by race and region highlight the need to improve the health of socially disadvantaged groups in Brazil. Addressing chronic conditions and mental health is needed to improve self-perceptions of health in Brazil as well.

  20. The sociogeometry of inequality: Part II

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eliazar, Iddo

    2015-05-01

    The study of socioeconomic inequality is of prime economic and social importance, and the key quantitative gauges of socioeconomic inequality are Lorenz curves and inequality indices - the most notable of the latter being the popular Gini index. In this series of papers we present a sociogeometric framework to the study of socioeconomic inequality. In this part we focus on the gap between the rich and the poor, which is quantified by gauges termed disparity curves. We shift from disparity curves to disparity sets, define inequality indices in terms of disparity sets, and introduce and explore a collection of distance-based and width-based inequality indices stemming from the geometry of disparity sets. We conclude with mean-absolute-deviation (MAD) representations of the inequality indices established in this series of papers, and with a comparison of these indices to the popular Gini index.

  1. Socioeconomic inequality in the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries: Results from the World Health Survey

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Noncommunicable diseases are an increasing health concern worldwide, but particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This study quantified and compared education- and wealth-based inequalities in the prevalence of five noncommunicable diseases (angina, arthritis, asthma, depression and diabetes) and comorbidity in low- and middle-income country groups. Methods Using 2002–04 World Health Survey data from 41 low- and middle-income countries, the prevalence estimates of angina, arthritis, asthma, depression, diabetes and comorbidity in adults aged 18 years or above are presented for wealth quintiles and five education levels, by sex and country income group. Symptom-based classification was used to determine angina, arthritis, asthma and depression rates, and diabetes diagnoses were self-reported. Socioeconomic inequalities according to wealth and education were measured absolutely, using the slope index of inequality, and relatively, using the relative index of inequality. Results Wealth and education inequalities were more pronounced in the low-income country group than the middle-income country group. Both wealth and education were inversely associated with angina, arthritis, asthma, depression and comorbidity prevalence, with strongest inequalities reported for angina, asthma and comorbidity. Diabetes prevalence was positively associated with wealth and, to a lesser extent, education. Adjustments for confounding variables tended to decrease the magnitude of the inequality. Conclusions Noncommunicable diseases are not necessarily diseases of the wealthy, and showed unequal distribution across socioeconomic groups in low- and middle-income country groups. Disaggregated research is warranted to assess the impact of individual noncommunicable diseases according to socioeconomic indicators. PMID:22726343

  2. Educational Opportunities. Tackling Ethnic, Class and Gender Inequality through Research.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Driessen, Geert, Ed.; Jungbluth, Paul, Ed.

    This collection presents a cross section of research into the theme of equal opportunities in education in the Netherlands. The majority of articles are on the Dutch situation, which resembles that of other countries in many respects. Contributions include: (1) "Educational Inequality Research in the Netherlands. Conditions, Constraints and…

  3. Educational inequalities in hypertension: complex patterns in intersections with gender and race in Brazil.

    PubMed

    Alves, Ronaldo Fernandes Santos; Faerstein, Eduardo

    2016-11-17

    Hypertension is a major public health issue worldwide, but knowledge is scarce about its patterns and its relationship to multiple axes of social disadvantages in Latin American countries. This study describes the educational inequality in the prevalence of hypertension in Brazil, including a joint stratification by gender and race. We analyzed interview-based data and blood pressure measurements from 59,402 participants aged 18 years or older at the 2013 Brazilian National Health Survey (PNS). Sociodemographic characteristics analyzed were gender (male, female), racial self-identification (white, brown, black), age (5-years intervals), and educational attainment (pre-primary, primary, secondary, tertiary). Hypertension was defined as systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mmHg, and/or self-reported use of antihypertensive medications in the last 2 weeks. We used logistic regression to evaluate the age-adjusted prevalences of hypertension (via marginal modeling), and pair-wise associations between education level and odds of hypertension. Further, the educational inequality in hypertension was summarized through the Relative Index of Inequality (RII) and the Slope Index of Inequality (SII). All analyses considered the appropriate sampling weights and intersections with gender, race, and education. Age-adjusted prevalence of hypertension was 34.0 % and 30.8 % among men and women, respectively. Black and brown women had a higher prevalence than whites (34.5 % vs. 31.8 % vs. 29.5 %), whereas no racial differences were observed among men. White and brown, but not black women, showed graded inverse associations between hypertension and educational attainment; among men, non-statistically significant associations were observed in all racial strata. The RII and SII estimated inverse gradients among white (RII = 2.5, SII = 18.1 %) and brown women (RII = 2.3, SII = 14.5 %), and homogeneous distributions

  4. Sociopolitical Change and Inequality of Educational Opportunities: Influences of Family Background and Institutional Factors on the Acquisition of Education (1940-2001)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chunling, Li

    2012-01-01

    This article analyzes the influences of family background and institutional factors on the acquisition of education (1940-2001) and demonstrates that the increase or decrease in the inequality of educational opportunity allocations are closely linked to the government's relevant policies. The rapid growth of the inequality in educational…

  5. Socioeconomic inequalities and mortality trends in BRICS, 1990–2010

    PubMed Central

    Mújica, Oscar J; Vázquez, Enrique; Duarte, Elisabeth C; Cortez-Escalante, Juan J; Molina, Joaquin

    2014-01-01

    Abstract Objective To explore the presence and magnitude of – and change in – socioeconomic and health inequalities between and within Brazil, the Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa – the countries known as BRICS – between 1990 and 2010. Methods Comparable data on socioeconomic and health indicators, at both country and primary subnational levels, were obtained from publicly available sources. Health inequalities between and within countries were identified and summarized by using standard gap and gradient metrics. Findings Four of the BRICS countries showed increases in both income level and income inequality between 1990 and 2010. The exception was Brazil, where income inequality decreased over the same period. Between-country inequalities in level of education and access to sanitation remained mostly unchanged but the largest between-country difference in mean life expectancy increased, from 9 years in 1990 to 20 years in 2010. Throughout the study period, there was disproportionality in the burden of disease between BRICS. However, the national infant mortality rate fell substantially over the study period in all five countries. In Brazil and China, the magnitude of subnational income-related inequalities in infant mortality, both absolute and relative, also decreased substantially. Conclusion Despite the economic prosperity and general improvements in health seen since 1990, profound inequalities in health persist both within and between BRICS. However, the substantial reductions observed – within Brazil and China – in the inequalities in income-related levels of infant mortality are encouraging. PMID:24940014

  6. Relative Health Effects of Education, Socioeconomic Status and Domestic Gender Inequity in Sweden: A Cohort Study

    PubMed Central

    Phillips, Susan P.; Hammarström, Anne

    2011-01-01

    Introduction Limited existing research on gender inequities suggests that for men workplace atmosphere shapes wellbeing while women are less susceptible to socioeconomic or work status but vulnerable to home inequities. Methods Using the 2007 Northern Swedish Cohort (n = 773) we identified relative contributions of perceived gender inequities in relationships, financial strain, and education to self-reported health to determine whether controlling for sex, examining interactions between sex and other social variables, or sex-disaggregating data yielded most information about sex differences. Results and Discussion Men had lower education but also less financial strain, and experienced less gender inequity. Overall, low education and financial strain detracted from health. However, sex-disaggregated data showed this to be true for women, whereas for men only gender inequity at home affected health. In the relatively egalitarian Swedish environment where women more readily enter all work arenas and men often provide parenting, traditional primacy of the home environment (for women) and the work environment (for men) in shaping health is reversing such that perceived domestic gender inequity has a significant health impact on men, while for women only education and financial strain are contributory. These outcomes were identified only when data were sex-disaggregated. PMID:21747922

  7. Educational inequality in cardiovascular diseases: a sibling approach.

    PubMed

    Søndergaard, Grethe; Dalton, Susanne Oksbjerg; Mortensen, Laust Hvas; Osler, Merete

    2018-02-01

    Educational inequality in diseases in the circulatory system (here termed cardiovascular disease) is well documented but may be confounded by early life factors. The aim of this observational study was to examine whether the associations between education and all cardiovascular diseases, ischaemic heart disease and stroke, respectively, were explained by family factors shared by siblings. The study population included all individuals born in Denmark between 1950 and 1979 who had at least one full sibling born in the same period. Using Cox regression, data were analysed in conventional cohort and within-sibship analyses in which the association was examined within siblings discordant on education. Assuming that attenuation of associations in the within-sibship as compared with the cohort analyses would indicate confounding from factors shared within families. A lower educational status was associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, ischaemic heart disease and stroke. All associations attenuated in the within-sibship analyses, in particular in the analyses on ischaemic heart disease before age 45 years. For instance, in the cohort analyses, the hazard rate of ischaemic heart disease among women less than 45 years who had a primary school education was 94% (hazard ratio 1.94 (1.78-2.12) higher than among those with a vocational education, while it attenuated to 51% (hazard ratio 1.51 (1.34-1.71)) in the within-sibship analysis. Confounding from factors shared by siblings explained the associations between education and the cardiovascular disease outcomes but to varying degrees. This should be taken into account when planning interventions aimed at reducing educational inequalities in the development of cardiovascular disease, ischaemic heart disease and stroke.

  8. Educational inequalities in parental care time: Cross-national evidence from Belgium, Denmark, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

    PubMed

    Gracia, Pablo; Ghysels, Joris

    2017-03-01

    This study uses time-diary data for dual-earner couples from Belgium, Denmark, Spain, and the United Kingdom to analyze educational inequalities in parental care time in different national contexts. For mothers, education is significantly associated with parenting involvement only in Spain and the United Kingdom. In Spain these differences are largely explained by inequalities in mothers' time and monetary resources, but not in the United Kingdom, where less-educated mothers disproportionally work in short part-time jobs. For fathers, education is associated with parenting time in Denmark, and particularly in Spain, while the wife's resources substantially drive these associations. On weekends, the educational gradient in parental care time applies only to Spain and the United Kingdom, two countries with particularly large inequalities in parents' opportunities to engage in parenting. The study shows country variations in educational inequalities in parenting, suggesting that socioeconomic resources, especially from mothers, shape important variations in parenting involvement. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  9. Inequalities in Educational Development: Papers Presented at an IIEP Seminar.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, Paris (France). International Inst. for Educational Planning.

    Based on the realization that the rapid worldwide growth of educational systems over the last two decades has not produced the expected eradication of social inequality, an international seminar was held for educational policy-makers, planners from developing countries, research workers in the area, and representatives of aid agencies from 33…

  10. Constructing Educational Inequality: An Assessment of Research on School Processes. Social Research and Educational Studies Series: 15.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Foster, Peter; And Others

    This book examines much of the large body of research on educational inequality in Britain since the Second World War, focusing on studies concerned with inequalities in the internal organization and functioning of the schools. A social constructionist approach to the study of social problems as a way of providing a reflexive perspective on the…

  11. The Determinants of Gender Inequality in Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ewert, Stephanie L.

    2010-01-01

    A dramatic reversal of gender inequality in education occurred when women reached parity with men in college graduation rates around 1982 and surpassed men since then. While scholars have documented this remarkable turnaround in the gender gap in college completion, few studies have offered explanations for why this reversal occurred or why women…

  12. Educational inequalities in obesity and gross domestic product: evidence from 70 countries.

    PubMed

    Kinge, Jonas Minet; Strand, Bjørn Heine; Vollset, Stein Emil; Skirbekk, Vegard

    2015-12-01

    We test the reversal hypothesis, which suggests that the relationship between obesity and education depends on the economic development in the country; in poor countries, obesity is more prevalent in the higher educated groups, while in rich countries the association is reversed-higher prevalence in the lower educated. We assembled a data set on obesity and education including 412,921 individuals from 70 countries in the period 2002-2013. Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita was used as a measure of economic development. We assessed the association between obesity and GDP by education using a two-stage mixed effects model. Country-specific educational inequalities in obesity were investigated using regression-based inequality indices. The reversal hypothesis was supported by our results in men and women. Obesity was positively associated with country GDP only among individuals with lower levels of education, while this association was absent or reduced in those with higher levels of education. This pattern was more pronounced in women than in men. Furthermore, educational inequalities in obesity were reversed with GDP; in low-income countries, obesity was more prevalent in individuals with higher education, in medium-income and high-income countries, obesity shifts to be more prevalent among those with lower levels of education. Obesity and economic development were positively associated. Our findings suggest that education might mitigate this effect. Global and national action aimed at the obesity epidemic should take this into account. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

  13. Changing patterns of social inequalities in anaemia among women in India: cross-sectional study using nationally representative data

    PubMed Central

    Balarajan, Yarlini S; Fawzi, Wafaie W; Subramanian, S V

    2013-01-01

    Objectives To examine the patterns of social inequalities in anaemia over time among women of reproductive age in India. Design Repeated cross-sectional study using nationally representative data from the 1998/1999 and 2005/2006 National Family Health Surveys of India. Multivariate modified Poisson regression models were used to assess trends and social inequalities in anaemia. Setting India. Population 164 600 ever-married women aged 15–49 years (n=79 197 in 1998/1999 and n=85 403 in 2005/2006) from 25 Indian states. Main outcome measure Anaemia status defined by haemoglobin level (<12 g/dl in non-pregnant women, haemoglobin<11 g/dl for pregnant women). Results Over the 7-year period, anaemia prevalence increased significantly from 51.3% (95% CI 50.6% to 52%) to 56.1% (95% CI 55.4% to 56.8%) among Indian women. This corresponded to a 1.11-fold increase in anaemia prevalence (95% CI 1.09 to 1.13) after adjustment for age and parity, and 1.08-fold increase (95% CI 1.06 to 1.10) after further adjustment for wealth, education and caste. There was marked state variation in anaemia prevalence; in only 4 of the 25 states did anaemia prevalence significantly decline. In both periods, anaemia was socially patterned, being positively associated with lower wealth status, lower education and belonging to scheduled tribes and scheduled castes. In this context of overall increasing anaemia prevalence, adjusted relative and absolute socioeconomic inequalities in anaemia by wealth, education and caste have narrowed significantly over time. Conclusions The significant increase in anaemia among India's women during this recent period is a matter of concern, and in contrast to secular improvements in other markers of women's health and nutritional status. While socioeconomic inequalities in anaemia persist, the relative and absolute inequalities in anaemia have decreased over time. Future research should explore the causes for these changing patterns, and inform the policy

  14. Changing educational inequalities in India in the context of affirmative action.

    PubMed

    Desai, Sonalde; Kulkarni, Veena

    2008-05-01

    Indian society suffers from substantial inequalities in education, employment, and income based on caste and ethnicity. Compensatory or positive discrimination policies reserve 15% of the seats in institutions of higher education and state and central government jobs for people of the lowest caste, the Scheduled Caste; 7.5% of the seats are reserved for the Scheduled Tribe. These programs have been strengthened by improved enforcement and increased funding in the 1990s. This positive discrimination has also generated popular backlash and on-the-ground sabotage of the programs. This paper examines the changes in educational attainment between various social groups for a period of nearly 20 years to see whether educational inequalities have declined over time. We use data from a large national sample survey of over 100,000 households for each of the four survey years--1983, 1987-1988, 1993-1994, and 1999-2000--and focus on the educational attainment of children and young adults aged 6-29. Our results show a declining gap between dalits, adivasis, and others in the odds of completing primary school. Such improvement is not seen for Muslims, a minority group that does not benefit from affirmative action. We find little improvement in inequality at the college level. Further, we do not find evidence that upper-income groups, the so-called creamy layer of dalits and adivasis, disproportionately benefit from the affirmative action programs at the expense of their lower-income counterparts.

  15. Changing Educational Inequalities in India in the Context of Affirmative Action

    PubMed Central

    DESAI, SONALDE; KULKARNI, VEENA

    2008-01-01

    Indian society suffers from substantial inequalities in education, employment, and income based on caste and ethnicity. Compensatory or positive discrimination policies reserve 15% of the seats in institutions of higher education and state and central government jobs for people of the lowest caste, the Scheduled Caste; 7.5% of the seats are reserved for the Scheduled Tribe. These programs have been strengthened by improved enforcement and increased funding in the 1990s. This positive discrimination has also generated popular backlash and on-the-ground sabotage of the programs. This paper examines the changes in educational attainment between various social groups for a period of nearly 20 years to see whether educational inequalities have declined over time. We use data from a large national sample survey of over 100,000 households for each of the four survey years—1983, 1987–1988, 1993–1994, and 1999–2000—and focus on the educational attainment of children and young adults aged 6–29. Our results show a declining gap between dalits, adivasis, and others in the odds of completing primary school. Such improvement is not seen for Muslims, a minority group that does not benefit from affirmative action. We find little improvement in inequality at the college level. Further, we do not find evidence that upper-income groups, the so-called creamy layer of dalits and adivasis, disproportionately benefit from the affirmative action programs at the expense of their lower-income counterparts. PMID:18613480

  16. Educational inequalities in smoking among men and women aged 16 years and older in 11 European countries.

    PubMed

    Huisman, M; Kunst, A E; Mackenbach, J P

    2005-04-01

    To determine those groups who are at increased risk of smoking related diseases, we assessed in which male and female generations smoking was more prevalent among lower educated groups than among the higher educated, in 11 European countries. Cross sectional analysis of data on smoking, covering the year 1998, from a social survey designed for all member states of the European Union. Higher and lower educated men and women aged 16 years and older from 11 member states of the European Union. Age standardised prevalence rates by education and prevalence odds ratios of current and ever daily smoking comparing lower educated groups with higher educated groups. A north-south gradient in educational inequalities in current and ever daily smoking was observed for women older than 24 years, showing larger inequalities in the northern countries. Such a gradient was not observed for men. A disadvantage for the lower educated in terms of smoking generally occurred later among women than among men. Indications of inequalities in smoking in the age group 16-24 years were observed for all countries, with the exception of women from Greece and Portugal. Preventing and reducing smoking among lower educated subgroups should be a priority of policies aiming to reduce inequalities in health in Europe. If steps are not taken to control tobacco use among the lower educated groups specifically, inequalities in lung cancer and other smoking related diseases should be anticipated in all populations of the European Union, and both sexes.

  17. Discovering Social Inequality: Dutch Educational Research in the Post-War Era

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bakker, Nelleke; Amsing, Hilda T. A.

    2012-01-01

    Between the 1940s and 1960s across Western Europe a spirit of reform along comprehensive lines manifested itself in secondary education, aiming at a reduction of the existing social inequality of educational chances. These reforms are said to be rooted in new policies and in new approaches in educational studies. This article explores the…

  18. The Relationship between Income Inequality and Inequality in Schooling

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mayer, Susan E.

    2010-01-01

    Children of affluent parents get more schooling than children of poor parents, which seems to imply that reducing income inequality would reduce inequality in schooling. Similarly, one of the best predictors of an individual's income is his educational attainment, which seems to imply that reducing inequality in schooling will reduce income…

  19. Effects of the 1994 Tax Reform on Intraprovincial Inequalities in Financing Basic Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lin, Tingjin

    2009-01-01

    This study explores the influence of the 1994 tax reform on intraprovincial inequality in financing basic education. The empirical analysis finds that the reform has decreased inequality in general, suggesting that the center may attain its policy goal through centralizing its relative fiscal capability and increasing the intergovernmental…

  20. Inequalities, Signum Functions and Wrinkles in Wiggle Graphs.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Priest, Dean B.; Wood, Dianne

    Presented is a graphical approach to teaching higher degree, rational function, and absolute value inequalities that simplifies the solution of these inequalities and thereby reduces the amount of classroom time that has to be devoted to this topic. Applications are also given for signum functions, maximum-minimum, and points of inflection…

  1. [Inequalities in physical inactivity according educational level in Spain, 1987 and 2007].

    PubMed

    Maestre-Miquel, Clara; Martínez, David; Polonio, Begoña; Astasio, Paloma; Santos, Juana; Regidor, Enrique

    2014-12-01

    To compare the magnitude of inequalities in the frequency of physical inactivity in Spain in 1987 and 2007, and assess whether the magnitude of inequality varies depending on the wealth of the area of residence. Descriptive cross-sectional study, national scope. Data from the National Health Survey, 1987 and 2007, adult population between 25-64 years: 30,000 individuals (1987) and 29,478 (2006/7). Main outcomes variable, leisure-time physical inactivity; exposure factor, educational level. An analysis was made of the prevalence and association using odds ratio (OR). Adjustment for socioeconomic variables: age, marital status, employment status, social class of head of household, and household income. Physical inactivity prevalence decreased in the two decades. There were more than three times more inactive males among those with primary education or less, compared to those with university studies. The magnitude of inequalities has increased in time: in a 45-64 years old man with primary school education: OR 2.43 (1.91-3.09) in 1987, to OR 2.77 (2.17-3.54) in 2007, adjusted for all socioeconomic variables. The prevalence of physical inactivity decreased between 1987 and 2007, and the largest decreases were in individuals with university studies. The gap in the differences in prevalence and OR of leisure-time physical inactivity has increased over time. It's necessary to contribute, with health education strategies and equity promotion are needed to help reduce the inequalities in risk behaviors. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  2. Absolute Risk Aversion and the Returns to Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brunello, Giorgio

    2002-01-01

    Uses 1995 Italian household income and wealth survey to measure individual absolute risk aversion of 1,583 married Italian male household heads. Uses this measure as an instrument for attained education in a standard-log earnings equation. Finds that the IV estimate of the marginal return to schooling is much higher than the ordinary least squares…

  3. Social inequalities in 'sickness': European welfare states and non-employment among the chronically ill.

    PubMed

    van der Wel, Kjetil A; Dahl, Espen; Thielen, Karsten

    2011-12-01

    The aim of this paper is to examine educational inequalities in the risk of non-employment among people with illnesses and how they vary between European countries with different welfare state characteristics. In doing so, the paper adds to the growing literature on welfare states and social inequalities in health by studying the often overlooked 'sickness'-dimension of health, namely employment behaviour among people with illnesses. We use European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) data from 2005 covering 26 European countries linked to country characteristics derived from Eurostat and OECD that include spending on active labour market policies, benefit generosity, income inequality, and employment protection. Using multilevel techniques we find that comprehensive welfare states have lower absolute and relative social inequalities in sickness, as well as more favourable general rates of non-employment. Hence, regarding sickness, welfare resources appear to trump welfare disincentives. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Tackling Social Inequality and Exclusion in Education: From Human Capital to Capabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vandekinderen, Caroline; Roets, Griet; Van Keer, Hilde; Roose, Rudi

    2018-01-01

    Both in the international context and in Flanders (the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium), research shows that many young people experience social exclusion in relation to education. However, research evidence concerning structural social inequality in education is predominantly underpinned by an outcome-based approach, since educational policies and…

  5. [Inequalities in mortality in the Italian longitudinal studies].

    PubMed

    Cardano, M; Costa, G; Demaria, M; Merler, E; Biggeri, A

    1999-01-01

    The article presents some of the most relevant results on inequalities in mortality, obtained by the two Italian longitudinal studies carried out in Turin, and Tuscany (in Leghorn and Florence). The two studies share the same methodology. Each database contains census data, information from population register and from death certificates. The authors approach this issue not in an analytical way (as they did in the works cited in the reference list), but answering some questions, relevant both from a scientific and a political point of view. How big are the health inequalities in Italy? Are the health inequalities in Italy increasing or decreasing? Are the health inequalities due to absolute or to relative deprivation? Does the mortality profile of the Italian population express the presence of old or new health inequalities? Can the health inequalities be reduced? The study's results prove that the health inequalities in Italy are deep and strictly related to individuals' position in the social fabric. Facing the other questions the authors focus only in the Turin data. From the 1970's to the 1990's the health inequalities in Turin have increased, despite of general improvement of population's health condition and the progressive reduction of the size of deprived groups. Turin data support both the hypotheses on the source of health inequalities, using long term unemployment as absolute deprivation's indicator, and status' inconsistency as (a row) indicator of relative deprivation. The growth of drug-related causes of death (AIDS and overdose) shows that in the Turin and--quite reasonably--Italian population old and new health inequalities live together. The essay closes offering evidence on the possibility to reduce health inequalities. For this purpose the authors analyses the Turin trend of avoidable deaths and infant and adolescent mortality.

  6. Redressing Gender Inequalities in Education. A Review of Constraints and Priorities in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Swainson, Nicola

    The causes and manifestations of gender inequalities in education in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe and policy options for redressing them were examined through a review of literature on the causes, nature, and extent of gender disparities in education in the study region and information on efforts to eliminate gender inequality. Special attention…

  7. Social Class and Education in Modern Britain: Why Inequalities Persist and How Can We Explain Them

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Themelis, Spyros

    2013-01-01

    This paper discusses the historical continuity and persistence of educational inequalities I postwar Britain. It shows that despite much policy activity, educational inequalities have never really been the real target of policy action. Rather, a more concrete policy target has been the support of the markets, which were expected to act an…

  8. Health inequalities according to educational level in different welfare regimes: a comparison of 23 European countries.

    PubMed

    Eikemo, Terje A; Huisman, Martijn; Bambra, Clare; Kunst, Anton E

    2008-05-01

    The object of this study was to determine whether the magnitude of educational health inequalities varies between European countries with different welfare regimes. The data source is based on the first and second wave of the European Social Survey. The first health indicator describes people's mental and physical health in general, while the second reports cases of any limiting longstanding illness. Educational inequalities in health were measured as the difference in health between people with an average number of years of education and people whose educational years lay one standard deviation below the national average. Moreover, South European welfare regimes had the largest health inequalities, while countries with Bismarckian welfare regimes tended to demonstrate the smallest. Although the other welfare regimes ranked relatively close to each other, the Scandinavian welfare regimes were placed less favourably than the Anglo-Saxon and East European. Thus, this study shows an evident patterning of magnitudes of health inequalities according to features of European welfare regimes. Although the greater distribution of welfare benefits within the Scandinavian countries are likely to have a protective effect for disadvantaged cities in these countries, other factors such as relative deprivation and class-patterned health behaviours might be acting to widen health inequalities.

  9. Learning to Plunder: Global Education, Global Inequality and the Global City

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tannock, Stuart

    2010-01-01

    Most research and policy discussions of education in the global city have focused on the ways in which globalization and the emergence of global or globalizing cities can create social, economic and educational inequality locally, within the global city itself. Global cities, however, are, by definition, powerful places, where the core…

  10. Language Education Policies and Inequality in Africa: Cross-National Empirical Evidence

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coyne, Gary

    2015-01-01

    This article examines the relationship between inequality and education through the lens of colonial language education policies in African primary and secondary school curricula. The languages of former colonizers almost always occupy important places in society, yet they are not widely spoken as first languages, meaning that most people depend…

  11. Has the National Cancer Screening Program reduced income inequalities in screening attendance in South Korea?

    PubMed

    Kim, Sujin; Kwon, Soonman; Subramanian, S V

    2015-11-01

    In 1999, the Korean government introduced the National Cancer Screening Program (NCSP) to increase the cancer-screening rate, particularly among the low-income population. This study investigates how the NCSP has decreased both relative and absolute income inequalities in the uptake of cancer screening in South Korea. A nationally representative cross-sectional repeated data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1998-2012, managed by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, was used to assess changes over time and the extent of discontinuity at the NCSP-recommended initiation age in the uptake of screening for breast, colorectal, and gastric cancers across income quartiles. Relative inequalities in the uptake of screening for all cancers decreased significantly over the policy period. Absolute inequalities did not change for most cancers, but marginally increased from 9 to 14% points in the uptake of screening for colorectal cancer among men. At the recommended initiation age, absolute inequalities did not change for breast and colorectal cancers but increased from 5 to 16% points for gastric cancer, for which relative inequality significantly decreased. The NCSP, which reduced out-of-pocket payment, may not decrease absolute gap although it leads to overall increases in the uptake of cancer screening and decreases in relative inequalities. Further investigations are needed to understand barriers that prevent the low-income population from attending cancer screening.

  12. Social inequality and ethnic differences in smoking in New Zealand.

    PubMed

    Barnett, Ross; Moon, Graham; Kearns, Robin

    2004-07-01

    This study tests a generalisation of the 'Wilkinson' thesis that the greater a nation's income inequality, the poorer the average national health status. We consider the effect of socio-economic inequality upon ethnic variations in smoking in New Zealand. Analysis of Maori and Pakeha (New Zealanders of European descent) smoking rates from the 1996 Census is conducted for 73 Territorial Local Authority areas in New Zealand, disaggregated by gender and rural-urban location. Partial correlation is used to control for absolute levels of deprivation and examine the independent effect of ethnic social inequality upon smoking rates. The level of social inequality between Maori and Pakeha has an independent effect on Maori smoking rates. Pakeha smoking rates by contrast are more sensitive to variations in absolute rather than relative deprivation. The effect of inequality is greatest for Maori women, especially among urban residents. By contrast, among Maori men the effects are greatest in rural areas. The results provide some qualified support for the Wilkinson thesis and suggest that policies which address fundamental issues of social inequality will play a small, but significant, role in helping to reduce high smoking rates amongst Maori. Copyright 2003 Elsevier Ltd.

  13. Time Trends and Inequalities of Under-Five Mortality in Nepal: A Secondary Data Analysis of Four Demographic and Health Surveys between 1996 and 2011

    PubMed Central

    Sreeramareddy, Chandrashekhar T.; Harsha Kumar, H. N.; Sathian, Brijesh

    2013-01-01

    Background Inequalities in progress towards achievement of Millennium Development Goal four (MDG-4) reflect unequal access to child health services. Objective To examine the time trends, socio-economic and regional inequalities of under-five mortality rate (U5MR) in Nepal. Methods We analyzed the data from complete birth histories of four Nepal Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) done in the years 1996, 2001, 2006 and 2011. For each livebirth, we computed survival period from birth until either fifth birthday or the survey date. Using direct methods i.e. by constructing life tables, we calculated yearly U5MRs from 1991 to 2010. Projections were made for the years 2011 to 2015. For each NDHS, U5MRs were calculated according to child's sex, mother’s education, household wealth index, rural/urban residence, development regions and ecological zones. Inequalities were calculated as rate difference, rate ratio, population attributable risk and hazard ratio. Results Yearly U5MR (per 1000 live births) had decreased from 157.3 (95% CIs 178.0-138.9) in 1991 to 43.2 (95% CIs 59.1-31.5) in 2010 i.e. 114.1 reduction in absolute risk. Projected U5MR for the year 2015 was 54.33. U5MRs had decreased in absolute terms in all sub groups but relative inequalities had reduced for gender and rural/urban residence only. Wide inequalities existed by wealth and education and increased between 1996 and 2011. For lowest wealth quintile (as compared to highest quintile) hazard ratio (HR) increased from 1.37 (95% CIs 1.27, 1.49) to 2.54 ( 95% CIs 2.25, 2.86) and for mothers having no education (as compared to higher education) HR increased from 2.55 (95% CIs 1.95, 3.33) to 3.75 (95% CIs 3.17, 4.44). Changes in regional inequities were marginal and irregular. Conclusions Nepal is most likely to achieve MDG-4 but eductional and wealth inequalities may widen further. National health policies should address to reduce inequalities in U5MR through ‘inclusive policies'. PMID:24224010

  14. How Did the Increase in Economic Inequality between 1970 and 1990 Affect American Children's Educational Attainment?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mayer, Susan E.

    This paper estimates the effect of the growth in income inequality on mean educational attainment and on the disparity in educational attainment between rich and poor children. The effect of income inequality that is due to the nonlinear effect of a family's own income is separated from the effect due to interpersonal interactions. Data from the…

  15. Incomplete equalization: The effect of tracking in secondary education on educational inequality.

    PubMed

    Holm, Anders; Jæger, Mads Meier; Karlson, Kristian Bernt; Reimer, David

    2013-11-01

    This paper tests whether the existence of vocationally oriented tracks within a traditionally academically oriented upper education system reduces socioeconomic inequalities in educational attainment. Based on a statistical model of educational transitions and data on two entire cohorts of Danish youth, we find that (1) the vocationally oriented tracks are less socially selective than the traditional academic track; (2) attending the vocationally oriented tracks has a negative effect on the likelihood of enrolling in higher education; and (3) in the aggregate the vocationally oriented tracks improve access to lower-tier higher education for low-SES students. These findings point to an interesting paradox in that tracking has adverse effects at the micro-level but equalizes educational opportunities at the macro-level. We also discuss whether similar mechanisms might exist in other educational systems. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Estimating the absolute wealth of households.

    PubMed

    Hruschka, Daniel J; Gerkey, Drew; Hadley, Craig

    2015-07-01

    To estimate the absolute wealth of households using data from demographic and health surveys. We developed a new metric, the absolute wealth estimate, based on the rank of each surveyed household according to its material assets and the assumed shape of the distribution of wealth among surveyed households. Using data from 156 demographic and health surveys in 66 countries, we calculated absolute wealth estimates for households. We validated the method by comparing the proportion of households defined as poor using our estimates with published World Bank poverty headcounts. We also compared the accuracy of absolute versus relative wealth estimates for the prediction of anthropometric measures. The median absolute wealth estimates of 1,403,186 households were 2056 international dollars per capita (interquartile range: 723-6103). The proportion of poor households based on absolute wealth estimates were strongly correlated with World Bank estimates of populations living on less than 2.00 United States dollars per capita per day (R(2)  = 0.84). Absolute wealth estimates were better predictors of anthropometric measures than relative wealth indexes. Absolute wealth estimates provide new opportunities for comparative research to assess the effects of economic resources on health and human capital, as well as the long-term health consequences of economic change and inequality.

  17. Summarizing health inequalities in a Balanced Scorecard. Methodological considerations.

    PubMed

    Auger, Nathalie; Raynault, Marie-France

    2006-01-01

    The association between social determinants and health inequalities is well recognized. What are now needed are tools to assist in disseminating such information. This article describes how the Balanced Scorecard may be used for summarizing data on health inequalities. The process begins by selecting appropriate social groups and indicators, and is followed by the measurement of differences across person, place, or time. The next step is to decide whether to focus on absolute versus relative inequality. The last step is to determine the scoring method, including whether to address issues of depth of inequality.

  18. All inequality is not equal: children correct inequalities using resource value.

    PubMed

    Shaw, Alex; Olson, Kristina R

    2013-01-01

    Fairness concerns guide children's judgments about how to share resources with others. However, it is unclear from past research if children take extant inequalities or the value of resources involved in an inequality into account when sharing with others; these questions are the focus of the current studies. In all experiments, children saw an inequality between two recipients-one had two more resources than another. What varied between conditions was the value of the resources that the child could subsequently distribute. When the resources were equal in value to those involved in the original inequality, children corrected the previous inequality by giving two resources to the child with fewer resources (Experiment 1). However, as the value of the resources increased relative to those initially shared by the experimenter, children were more likely to distribute the two high value resources equally between the two recipients, presumably to minimize the overall inequality in value (Experiments 1 and 2). We found that children specifically use value, not just size, when trying to equalize outcomes (Experiment 3) and further found that children focus on the relative rather than absolute value of the resources they share-when the experimenter had unequally distributed the same high value resource that the child would later share, children corrected the previous inequality by giving two high value resources to the person who had received fewer high value resources. These results illustrate that children attempt to correct past inequalities and try to maintain equality not just in the count of resources but also by using the value of resources.

  19. All inequality is not equal: children correct inequalities using resource value

    PubMed Central

    Shaw, Alex; Olson, Kristina R.

    2013-01-01

    Fairness concerns guide children's judgments about how to share resources with others. However, it is unclear from past research if children take extant inequalities or the value of resources involved in an inequality into account when sharing with others; these questions are the focus of the current studies. In all experiments, children saw an inequality between two recipients—one had two more resources than another. What varied between conditions was the value of the resources that the child could subsequently distribute. When the resources were equal in value to those involved in the original inequality, children corrected the previous inequality by giving two resources to the child with fewer resources (Experiment 1). However, as the value of the resources increased relative to those initially shared by the experimenter, children were more likely to distribute the two high value resources equally between the two recipients, presumably to minimize the overall inequality in value (Experiments 1 and 2). We found that children specifically use value, not just size, when trying to equalize outcomes (Experiment 3) and further found that children focus on the relative rather than absolute value of the resources they share—when the experimenter had unequally distributed the same high value resource that the child would later share, children corrected the previous inequality by giving two high value resources to the person who had received fewer high value resources. These results illustrate that children attempt to correct past inequalities and try to maintain equality not just in the count of resources but also by using the value of resources. PMID:23882227

  20. Health inequality and community-based health insurance: a case study of rural Rwanda with repeated cross-sectional data.

    PubMed

    Liu, Kai; Cook, Benjamin; Lu, Chunling

    2018-06-08

    To investigate the inequality in medical care utilization and household catastrophic health spending (HCHS) between the poverty and non-poverty residents in rural Rwanda and their links with community-based health insurance (Mutuelles). We used the 2005 and 2010 nationally representative Integrated Living Conditions Surveys. We estimated multilevel logistic regression models to obtain the adjusted levels and trends of both absolute and relative inequalities and examined associations between Mutuelles status and these inequalities. Significant inequality between the two income groups, in both absolute and relative measures of medical care utilization and HCHS remained unchanged in 2005 and 2010. Significant reduction in adjusted absolute inequality in percentage of HCHS between the two years was not associated with Mutuelles status. While Mutuelles promoted medical care utilization and reduced HCHS, it did not play a significant role in reducing their inequalities by poverty status between 2005 and 2010. Future studies should assess the impact of additional strategies (e.g., the exemption of Mutuelles premiums and copayments for households living in poverty), on reducing inequality by poverty status.

  1. Socioeconomic inequality in preterm birth in four Brazilian birth cohort studies.

    PubMed

    Sadovsky, Ana Daniela Izoton de; Matijasevich, Alicia; Santos, Iná S; Barros, Fernando C; Miranda, Angelica Espinosa; Silveira, Mariangela Freitas

    To analyze economic inequality (absolute and relative) due to family income in relation to the occurrence of preterm births in Southern Brazil. Four birth cohort studies were conducted in the years 1982, 1993, 2004, and 2011. The main exposure was monthly family income and the primary outcome was preterm birth. The inequalities were calculated using the slope index of inequality and the relative index of inequality, adjusted for maternal skin color, education, age, and marital status. The prevalence of preterm births increased from 5.8% to approximately 14% (p-trend<0.001). Late preterm births comprised the highest proportion among the preterm births in all studies, although their rates decreased over the years. The analysis on the slope index of inequality demonstrated that income inequality arose in the 1993, 2004, and 2011 studies. After adjustment, only the 2004 study maintained the difference between the poorest and the richest subjects, which was 6.3 percentage points. The relative index of inequality showed that, in all studies, the poorest mothers were more likely to have preterm newborns than the richest. After adjustment for confounding factors, it was observed that the poorest mothers only had a greater chance of this outcome in 2004. In a final model, economic inequalities resulting from income were found in relation to preterm births only in 2004, although a higher prevalence of prematurity continued to be observed in the poorest population, in all the studies. Copyright © 2017 Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  2. Gender Inequalities and Higher Music Education: Comparing the UK and Sweden

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    de Boise, Sam

    2018-01-01

    Whilst the impact of gender inequalities has been studied in relation to music education, especially in the UK, relatively little has been written about their impact on higher music education (HME). This article compares data on HME programs and courses, in the UK and Sweden, from 2010 to 2014. It looks at similarities and differences in the…

  3. How education systems shape cross-national ethnic inequality in math competence scores: Moving beyond mean differences.

    PubMed

    Spörlein, Christoph; Schlueter, Elmar

    2018-01-01

    Here we examine a conceptualization of immigrant assimilation that is based on the more general notion that distributional differences erode across generations. We explore this idea by reinvestigating the efficiency-equality trade-off hypothesis, which posits that stratified education systems educate students more efficiently at the cost of increasing inequality in overall levels of competence. In the context of ethnic inequality in math achievement, this study explores the extent to which an education system's characteristics are associated with ethnic inequality in terms of both the group means and group variances in achievement. Based on data from the 2012 PISA and mixed-effect location scale models, our analyses revealed two effects: on average, minority students had lower math scores than majority students, and minority students' scores were more concentrated at the lower end of the distribution. However, the ethnic inequality in the distribution of scores declined across generations. We did not find compelling evidence that stratified education systems increase mean differences in competency between minority and majority students. However, our analyses revealed that in countries with early educational tracking, minority students' math scores tended to cluster at the lower end of the distribution, regardless of compositional and school differences between majority and minority students.

  4. How education systems shape cross-national ethnic inequality in math competence scores: Moving beyond mean differences

    PubMed Central

    Spörlein, Christoph

    2018-01-01

    Here we examine a conceptualization of immigrant assimilation that is based on the more general notion that distributional differences erode across generations. We explore this idea by reinvestigating the efficiency-equality trade-off hypothesis, which posits that stratified education systems educate students more efficiently at the cost of increasing inequality in overall levels of competence. In the context of ethnic inequality in math achievement, this study explores the extent to which an education system’s characteristics are associated with ethnic inequality in terms of both the group means and group variances in achievement. Based on data from the 2012 PISA and mixed-effect location scale models, our analyses revealed two effects: on average, minority students had lower math scores than majority students, and minority students’ scores were more concentrated at the lower end of the distribution. However, the ethnic inequality in the distribution of scores declined across generations. We did not find compelling evidence that stratified education systems increase mean differences in competency between minority and majority students. However, our analyses revealed that in countries with early educational tracking, minority students’ math scores tended to cluster at the lower end of the distribution, regardless of compositional and school differences between majority and minority students. PMID:29494677

  5. Educational inequalities in smoking among Japanese adults aged 25-94 years: Nationally representative sex- and age-specific statistics.

    PubMed

    Tabuchi, Takahiro; Kondo, Naoki

    2017-04-01

    Few studies have investigated differences in age- and gender-specific educational gradients in tobacco smoking among the whole range of adult age groups. We examined educational inequality in smoking among Japanese adults aged 25-94 years. Using a large nationally representative sample (167,925 men and 186,588 women) in 2010, prevalence of current smoking and heavy smoking among daily smokers and their inequalities attributable to educational attainment were analyzed according to sex and age groups. Among men aged 25-34 years, junior high school graduates had the highest current smoking prevalence at 68.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 66.0%-70.6%), and graduate school graduates had the lowest at 19.4% (95% CI, 17.2%-21.9%). High school graduates had the second highest current smoking prevalence (e.g., 55.9%; 95% CI, 54.9%-56.8% in men aged 25-34 years). Among men aged 75-94 years, the difference in current smoking across educational categories was small. A similar but steeper educational gradient in current smoking was observed among women. Among women aged 25-34 years, junior high school graduates had the highest current smoking prevalence at 49.3% (95% CI, 46.3%-52.3%), and graduate school graduates had the lowest at 4.8% (95% CI, 2.9%-7.4%). Compared with older age groups, such as 65-94 years, younger age groups, such as 25-54 years, had higher estimates of inequality indicators for educational inequality in both current and heavy smoking in both sexes. Educational inequalities in current and heavy smoking were apparent and large in the young population compared with older generations. The current study provides basic data on educational inequalities in smoking among Japanese adults. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Four Decades of Obesity Trends among Non-Hispanic Whites and Blacks in the United States: Analyzing the Influences of Educational Inequalities in Obesity and Population Improvements in Education.

    PubMed

    Yu, Yan

    2016-01-01

    Both obesity (body mass index ≥ 30) and educational attainment have increased dramatically in the United States since the 1970s. This study analyzed the influences of educational inequalities in obesity and population improvements in education on national obesity trends between 1970 and 2010. For non-Hispanic white and black males and females aged 25-74 years, educational differences in the probability of being obese were estimated from the 1971-2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, and population distributions of age and educational groups, from the 1970 Census and 2010 American Community Survey. In the total population, obesity increased from 15.7% to 38.8%, and there were increases in the greater obese probabilities of non-college graduates relative to four-year college graduates. The increase in obesity would have been lower by 10% (2.2 percentage points) if educational inequalities in obesity had stayed at their 1970 values and lower by one third (7.9 points) if obesity inequalities had been eliminated. Obesity inequalities were larger for females than males and for whites than blacks, and obesity did not differ by education among black males. As a result, the impact of obesity inequalities on the obesity trend was largest among white females (a 47% reduction in the obesity increase if obesity inequalities had been eliminated), and virtually zero among black males. On the other hand, without educational improvements, the obesity increase would have been 9% more in the total population, 23% more among white females and not different in the other three subpopulations. Results indicate that obesity inequalities made sizable contributions to the obesity trends, and the obesity reductions associated with educational improvements were more limited.

  7. Eliminating Educational Inequality through E-Learning: The Case of Virtual University of Pakistan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Din, Aisha Muhammad; Jabeen, Sadia

    2014-01-01

    This study aims at examining the role of e-learning in combating the issues of inequality in terms of access and quality in the field of higher education in Pakistan. The education system in Pakistan is mainly characterized by educational disparity. The standard of education is directly proportional to the investment students make in the form of…

  8. Estimating the absolute wealth of households

    PubMed Central

    Gerkey, Drew; Hadley, Craig

    2015-01-01

    Abstract Objective To estimate the absolute wealth of households using data from demographic and health surveys. Methods We developed a new metric, the absolute wealth estimate, based on the rank of each surveyed household according to its material assets and the assumed shape of the distribution of wealth among surveyed households. Using data from 156 demographic and health surveys in 66 countries, we calculated absolute wealth estimates for households. We validated the method by comparing the proportion of households defined as poor using our estimates with published World Bank poverty headcounts. We also compared the accuracy of absolute versus relative wealth estimates for the prediction of anthropometric measures. Findings The median absolute wealth estimates of 1 403 186 households were 2056 international dollars per capita (interquartile range: 723–6103). The proportion of poor households based on absolute wealth estimates were strongly correlated with World Bank estimates of populations living on less than 2.00 United States dollars per capita per day (R2 = 0.84). Absolute wealth estimates were better predictors of anthropometric measures than relative wealth indexes. Conclusion Absolute wealth estimates provide new opportunities for comparative research to assess the effects of economic resources on health and human capital, as well as the long-term health consequences of economic change and inequality. PMID:26170506

  9. Social Exclusion and Inequality in Higher Education in China: A Capability Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wang, Li

    2011-01-01

    Following calls for further research in education inequality beyond input and output measures, especially with a qualitative approach, and building on the implications of capability deprivation on equality (Unterhalter, 2003a,b), we extend the findings of Sen's (1979, 1990, 1992, 2000) capability approach to higher education (HE). This article…

  10. Population increase, economic growth, educational inequality, and income distribution: some recent evidence.

    PubMed

    Ram, R

    1984-04-01

    The relationship between population increase, economic growth, education and income inequality was examined in a cross-section study based on data from 26 developing and 2 developed countries. As other studies have noted, high population growth is associated with a less equal income distribution. A 1 percentage point reduction in the rate of population growth tends to raise the income share of the poorest 80% in the less developed world by almost 5 percentage points and is associated with a 1.7 percentage point increase in the income share of the poorest 40%. The relationship between short-run income growth and equality, on the other hand, is strong and positive. Estimates suggest that a 1 percentage point increase in the short-run rate of growth of the gross domestic product (GDP) increases the income share of the bottom 80% by about 2 percentage points and that of the poorest 40% by almost 1 percentage point. Although higher mean schooling appears to be a mild equalizer, educational inequality does not appear to have an adverse effect on income distribution. Overall, these results challenge the widely held belief that there must be a growth-equity trade-off. Moreover, they suggest that the impact of educational inequality on income distribution may be different from that observed in earlier studies, implying a need for caution in using these earlier results as a basis for educational policy development.

  11. Differential health reporting by education level and its impact on the measurement of health inequalities among older Europeans

    PubMed Central

    Bago d’Uva, Teresa; O’Donnell, Owen; van Doorslaer, Eddy

    2008-01-01

    Background This study aims to establish whether health reporting differs by education level and, if so, to determine the extent to which this biases the measurement of health inequalities among older Europeans. Methods Data are from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) covering eight countries. Differential reporting of health by education is identified from ratings of anchoring vignettes that describe fixed health states. Ratings of own health in six domains (mobility, pain, sleep, breathing, emotional health and cognition) are corrected for differences in reporting using an extended ordered probit model. For each country and health domain, we compare the corrected with the uncorrected age–sex standardized high-to-low education rate ratio for the absence of a health problem. Results Before correction for reporting differences across the 48 combinations of country by health domain, there was no inequality in health by education (P > 0.05) in 32 of 48 cases. However, there were reporting differences by education (P < 0.05) in 29 out of 48 cases. In general, higher educated older Europeans are more likely to rate a given health state negatively (except for Spain and Sweden). Correcting for these differences generally increases health inequalities (except for Spain and Sweden) and results in the emergence of inequalities in 18 cases (P < 0.05), which may be considered ‘statistically significant’. The greatest impact is in Belgium, Germany and The Netherlands, where inequalities (P < 0.05) appear only after adjustment in four of the six health domains. Conclusions These results emphasize the need to account for differences in the reporting of health. Measured health inequalities by education are often underestimated, and even go undetected, if no account is taken of these reporting differences. PMID:18676985

  12. Educational inequalities in 28 day and 1-year mortality after hospitalisation for incident acute myocardial infarction--a nationwide cohort study.

    PubMed

    Igland, Jannicke; Vollset, Stein Emil; Nygård, Ottar K; Sulo, Gerhard; Sulo, Enxhela; Ebbing, Marta; Næss, Øyvind; Ariansen, Inger; Tell, Grethe S

    2014-12-20

    There is little recent evidence on the impact of comorbidities and access to revascularisation procedures on educational inequalities in mortality after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The aim of the study was to investigate educational inequalities in mortality among all patients hospitalised for an incident AMI during 2001-2009 in Norway. Data were obtained through the Cardiovascular Disease in Norway (CVDNOR) project. Incident AMI was defined as an AMI-hospitalisation without any AMI-events in the previous 7 years. Education was categorised as basic, upper secondary or tertiary (college/university). Cox regression was used to assess educational differences in 28-day and 29-365-day mortality after an incident AMI in terms of hazard ratios and relative index of inequality (RII). RII can be interpreted as the ratio in mortality between the 0 th and the 100th percentile of the education distribution. 111 993 incident AMIs were included (39.4% women). Among patients aged 35-69, RIIs (95% CI) adjusted for age, sex and year were 1.86 (1.59-2.18) and 2.10 (1.69-2.59) for 28-day and 29-365-day mortality respectively. Among patients aged 70-94 the corresponding RIIs were 1.12 (1.06-1.30) and 1.28 (1.19-1.38). Educational inequalities in mortality were attenuated after adjustment for comorbidities and revascularisation, but were still significant. Educational inequalities did not decrease during 2001-2009. Educational inequalities in both 28-day and 29-365 day mortality were strong and persistent during 2001-2009. Further research is needed to investigate if these disparities are driven by inequalities in the severity of the AMI or by inequitable access to treatment and rehabilitation. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. How robust is the calculation of health inequality trends by educational attainment in England and Wales using the Longitudinal Study?

    PubMed

    Flanagan, L; McCartney, G

    2015-06-01

    Inequalities in mortality by educational attainment are wider in Eastern Europe than in West and Central Europe, but have thus far been largely limited to cross-sectional analyses. This study explored the potential to use the Longitudinal Study to describe trends in mortality inequality by educational attainment in England and Wales from 1971 to 2009 and the limitations in the available data. Comparison of cohort studies. Data from the Office for National Statistics Longitudinal Study were used which takes a sample of respondees from each Census (1971-2001) and links them to death certification. Age-standardized mortality was calculated by educational attainment for those aged 25-69 years as was the Relative Index of Inequality and Slope Index of Inequality for men and women for each time period. Overall mortality declined in all categories of educational attainment for men and women from 1971. Limited data were collected on educational attainment in the Censuses prior to 2001, combined with the high proportion of respondents with missing data or reporting 'no education', meant that estimates of inequalities for the period 1971 to 2000 were very imprecise and likely to be misleading. For 2001-2009, the slope index of inequality was 268 (95% CI 57-478) and relative index of inequality was 0.61 (95% CI 0.13-1.10) for the total population; 354 (95% CI 72-636) and 0.67 (95% CI 0.14-1.21) respectively for men; and 231 (95% CI 72-389) and 0.66 (95% CI 0.21-1.11) respectively for women. Limited educational data in the Censuses prior to 2001 makes calculation of mortality inequalities by educational attainment in England and Wales imprecise and potentially misleading. International comparisons and time trend analyses using these data prior to 2001 should be done with great caution. Copyright © 2015 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. The Progressivity of Public Education in Greece: Empirical Findings and Policy Implications

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koutsampelas, Christos; Tsakloglou, Panos

    2015-01-01

    This paper examines the short-run distributional effects of publicly provided education services in Greece using static incidence analysis. Public education is found to be inequality-reducing but the progressivity of the system withers away as we move up to higher educational levels. We employ a framework of both relative and absolute inequality…

  15. Segregation and the Underrepresentation of Blacks and Hispanics in Gifted Education: Social Inequality and Deficit Paradigms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ford, Donna Y.

    2014-01-01

    This article examines the underrepresentation of African American and Hispanic students in gifted education, proposing that social inequality, deficit thinking, and microaggressions contribute to the inequitable segregated programs. Underrepresentation trends are presented, along with methods for calculating underrepresentation and inequity.…

  16. The Role of Social Capital in the Explanation of Educational Success and Educational Inequalities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roth, Tobias

    2013-01-01

    This article examines the role that social capital plays in school success and in the explanation of social and ethnic inequalities in the German educational system. Based on Coleman's well-known concept of social capital, different aspects of social capital are distinguished, including social network composition, parent-school interaction and…

  17. Education and Inequality in India: A Classroom View. Routledge Contemporary South Asia Series

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Majumdar, Manabi; Mooij, Jos

    2011-01-01

    Universalization of primary education has been high on the policy agenda in India. This book looks at the reproduction of social inequalities within the educational system in India, and how this is contested in different ways. It examines whether the concept of "education for all" is just a mechanically conceived policy target to chasing…

  18. Educational inequalities in disability pensioning - the impact of illness and occupational, psychosocial, and behavioural factors: The Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT).

    PubMed

    Nilsen, Sara Marie; Ernstsen, Linda; Krokstad, Steinar; Westin, Steinar

    2012-03-01

    Socioeconomic inequalities in disability pensioning are well established, but we know little about the causes. The main aim of this study was to disentangle educational inequalities in disability pensioning in Norwegian women and men. The baseline data consisted of 32,948 participants in the Norwegian Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (1995-97), 25-66 years old, without disability pension, and in paid work. Additional analyses were made for housewives and unemployed/laid-off persons. Information on the occurrence of disability pension was obtained from the National Insurance Administration database up to 2008. Data analyses were performed using Cox regression. We found considerable educational inequalities in disability pensioning, and the incidence proportion by 2008 was higher in women (25-49 years 11%, 50-66 years 30%) than men (25-49 years 6%, 50-66 years 24%). Long-standing limiting illness and occupational, psychosocial, and behavioural factors were not sufficient to explain the educational inequalities: young men with primary education had a hazard ratio of 3.1 (95% CI 2.3-4.3) compared to young men with tertiary education. The corresponding numbers for young women were 2.7 (2.1-3.1). We found small educational inequalities in the oldest women in paid work and no inequalities in the oldest unemployed/laid-off women and housewives. Illness and occupational, psychosocial, and behavioural factors explained some of the educational inequalities in disability pensioning. However, considerable inequalities remain after accounting for these factors. The higher incidence of disability pensioning in women than men and the small or non-existing educational inequalities in the oldest women calls for a gender perspective in future research.

  19. Higher Education as Modulator of Gender Inequalities: Evidence of the Spanish Case

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pastor, José Manuel; Peraita, Carlos; Soler, Ángel

    2016-01-01

    Raising educational levels may help to reduce inequalities between men and women in certain social and economic aspects. Using statistics for Spain, we analyse labour market behaviours such as the rates of activity and unemployment by sex according to the educational level. The results reveal that the differences between men and women decrease as…

  20. An ANOVA Analysis of Education Inequities Using Participation and Representation in Education Systems

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carter, Bruce J.

    2017-01-01

    A problem recognized in the United States is that a K-12 public education in urban communities is more likely to support existing patterns of inequality than to serve as a pathway to opportunity. The specific focus of this research was on the poor academic performance in U.S. K-12 urban communities. Using Benet's polarities of democracy theory as…

  1. Toward a New Understanding of Community-Based Education: The Role of Community-Based Educational Spaces in Disrupting Inequality for Minoritized Youth

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baldridge, Bianca J.; Beck, Nathan; Medina, Juan Carlos; Reeves, Marlo A.

    2017-01-01

    Community-based educational spaces (CBES; afterschool programs, community-based youth organizations, etc.) have a long history of interrupting patterns of educational inequity and continue to do so under the current educational policy climate. The current climate of education, marked by neoliberal education restructuring, has left community-based…

  2. Health inequalities in Ethiopia: modeling inequalities in length of life within and between population groups.

    PubMed

    Tranvåg, Eirik Joakim; Ali, Merima; Norheim, Ole Frithjof

    2013-07-11

    Most studies on health inequalities use average measures, but describing the distribution of health can also provide valuable knowledge. In this paper, we estimate and compare within-group and between-group inequalities in length of life for population groups in Ethiopia in 2000 and 2011. We used data from the 2011 and 2000 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey and the Global Burden of Disease study 2010, and the MODMATCH modified logit life table system developed by the World Health Organization to model mortality rates, life expectancy, and length of life for Ethiopian population groups stratified by wealth quintiles, gender and residence. We then estimated and compared within-group and between-group inequality in length of life using the Gini index and absolute length of life inequality. Length of life inequality has decreased and life expectancy has increased for all population groups between 2000 and 2011. Length of life inequality within wealth quintiles is about three times larger than the between-group inequality of 9 years. Total length of life inequality in Ethiopia was 27.6 years in 2011. Longevity has increased and the distribution of health in Ethiopia is more equal in 2011 than 2000, with length of life inequality reduced for all population groups. Still there is considerable potential for further improvement. In the Ethiopian context with a poor and highly rural population, inequality in length of life within wealth quintiles is considerably larger than between them. This suggests that other factors than wealth substantially contribute to total health inequality in Ethiopia and that identification and quantification of these factors will be important for identifying proper measures to further reduce length of life inequality.

  3. Student-Centered Instruction and Academic Achievement: Linking Mechanisms of Educational Inequality to Schools' Instructional Strategy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Andersen, Ida Gran; Andersen, Simon Calmar

    2017-01-01

    Research in the sociology of education argues that the educational system provides different learning opportunities for students with different socioeconomic backgrounds and that this circumstance makes the educational process an important institutional context for the reproduction of educational inequality. Using combined survey and register data…

  4. Educational inequalities in premature mortality in Poland, 2002–2011: a population-based cross-sectional study

    PubMed Central

    Pikala, Małgorzata; Burzyn´ska, Monika; Pikala, Robert; Bryła, Marek; Maniecka-Bryła, Irena

    2016-01-01

    Background The aim of the study is to evaluate the differences in premature mortality between educational groups of Polish inhabitants in 2002 and 2011. Methods The analysis included all deaths among inhabitants of Poland, aged 25–64 years, which occurred in 2002 (N=97 004) and 2011 (N=104 598). We calculated age-standardised death rates (SDRs) and summary measures on inequalities. The relative index of inequality (RII) was calculated with Poisson regression. Results The SDR for Poland decreased from 285.7 per 100 000 in 2002 to 246.0 in 2011 among males with higher education and increased from 1141.0 in 2002 to 1183.0 in 2011 among males with lower secondary or less education (the rate ratio increased from 4.0 to 4.8). With regard to females with higher education, the SDR decreased from 127.2 per 100 000 in 2002 to 115.6 in 2011. Among females with lower secondary or less education, the SDR increased from 375.8 per 100 000 in 2002 to 423.1 in 2011 (the rate ratio increased from 3.0 to 3.7). The RII increased from 5.8 to 9.7 in the male group and from 4.4 to 8.3 in the female group. The greatest educational inequalities in 2011 were observed in females who died of cardiovascular diseases (RII=14.9) and lung cancer (RII=6.6) and in males who died of suicides (RII=19.3) and lung cancer (RII=11.9). Conclusions Educational inequalities in premature mortality in Poland are growing. There is a need to implement health education programmes targeted at groups of the most poorly educated Polish inhabitants, especially for diseases resulting from smoking and excessive alcohol consumption. PMID:27678532

  5. The Price of Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jensen, Arthur R.

    1975-01-01

    Some of the key problems of educational equality -- equality of opportunities and inequality of performance; individual differences vs. group differences, coping with group inequality -- are made explicit. (Author/KM)

  6. Socioeconomic differences in emotional symptoms among adolescents in the Nordic countries: recommendations on how to present inequality.

    PubMed

    Nielsen, Line; Damsgaard, Mogens Trab; Meilstrup, Charlotte; Due, Pernille; Madsen, Katrine Rich; Koushede, Vibeke; Holstein, Bjørn Evald

    2015-02-01

    This comparative study examines absolute and relative socioeconomic differences in emotional symptoms among adolescents using standardised data from five Nordic countries and gives recommendations on how to present socioeconomic inequality. The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) international cross-sectional study from 2005/2006 provided data on 29,642 11-15-year-old adolescents from nationally random samples in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The outcome was daily emotional symptoms. Family Affluence Scale (FAS) was used as indicator of socioeconomic position. We applied four summary measures of inequality: Prevalence Difference, Odds Ratio, Slope Index of Inequality and Relative Index of Inequality, and presented the socioeconomic inequality by a graphical illustration of the prevalence of emotional symptoms, the size of the FAS groups and the summary indices of inequality in each country. The prevalence of emotional symptoms ranged from 8.1% in Denmark to 13.2% in Iceland. There were large country variations in the size of the low FAS-group ranging from 2% in Iceland to 12% in Finland. The largest absolute and relative socioeconomic inequalities were found in Iceland and the smallest in Finland for girls and in Denmark for boys. Emotional symptoms were more common among nordic adolescents from low affluence families this association appeared in the study of both absolute and relative inequality. A comprehensive presentation of socioeconomic inequality should include the prevalence of the health outcome, the size of the socioeconomic groups, and the regression line representing the summary indices of inequality. © 2014 the Nordic Societies of Public Health.

  7. Skills, education, and the rise of earnings inequality among the "other 99 percent".

    PubMed

    Autor, David H

    2014-05-23

    The singular focus of public debate on the "top 1 percent" of households overlooks the component of earnings inequality that is arguably most consequential for the "other 99 percent" of citizens: the dramatic growth in the wage premium associated with higher education and cognitive ability. This Review documents the central role of both the supply and demand for skills in shaping inequality, discusses why skill demands have persistently risen in industrialized countries, and considers the economic value of inequality alongside its potential social costs. I conclude by highlighting the constructive role for public policy in fostering skills formation and preserving economic mobility. Copyright © 2014, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  8. Inclusive Education and Social Inequality: An Update of the Question and Some Geographical Considerations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rambla, Xavier; Ferrer, Ferran; Tarabini, Aina; Verger, Antoni

    2008-01-01

    The aim of this article is to review the current state of inclusive education in the world and to suggest a few relevant considerations. The first section "Two parallel concerns" retraces the inescapable connections between the educational aspects of inclusive education and more general concerns regarding inequality. The second section "Inclusive…

  9. The role of birthplace and educational attainment on induced abortion inequalities.

    PubMed

    González-Rábago, Yolanda; Rodriguez-Alvarez, Elena; Borrell, Luisa N; Martín, Unai

    2017-01-13

    Induced abortion (IA) has shown social inequality related to birthplace and education with higher rates of IAs in immigrant and in less educated women relative to their native and highly educated counterparts. This study examined the independent and joint effects of birthplace and education on IA, repeated and IA performed during the 2nd trimester of pregnancy among women residing in the Basque Country, Spain. We conducted a cross-sectional population-based study of IA among women aged 25-49 years residing in the Basque Country, Spain, between 2011 and 2013. Log-binomial regression was used to quantify the independent and joint effects of birthplace and education attainment on all outcomes. Immigrant women exhibited higher probability of having an IAs (PR: 5.31), a repeated (PR: 7.23) or a 2nd trimester IAs (PR: 4.07) than women born in Spain. We observed higher probabilities for all outcomes among women with a primary or less education relative to those with a graduate education (All IAs PR: 2.51; repeated PR: 6.00; 2nd trimester PR: 3.08). However, no significant heterogeneity was observed for the effect of education on the association of birthplace with IAs, repeated or 2nd trimester IAs. Birthplace and education are key factors to explain not only an IA decision but also having a repeated or a 2nd trimester IA. However, the effects of birthplace and education may be independent from each other on these outcomes. A better understanding of these factors on IAs is needed when designing programs for sexual and reproductive health aimed to reduce inequalities among women.

  10. Educational inequality in cancer mortality: a record linkage study of over 35 million Italians.

    PubMed

    Alicandro, Gianfranco; Frova, Luisa; Sebastiani, Gabriella; El Sayed, Iman; Boffetta, Paolo; La Vecchia, Carlo

    2017-09-01

    Large studies are needed to evaluate socioeconomic inequality for site-specific cancer mortality. We conducted a longitudinal census-based national study to quantify the relative inequality in cancer mortality among educational levels in Italy. We linked the 2011 Italian census with the 2012 and 2013 death registries. Educational inequality in overall cancer and site-specific cancer mortality were evaluated by computing the mortality rate ratio (MRR). A total of 35,708,445 subjects aged 30-74 years and 147,981 cancer deaths were registered. Compared to the lowest level of education (none or primary school), the MRR for all cancers in the highest level (university) was 0.57 (95% CI 0.55; 0.58) in men and 0.84 (95% CI 0.81; 0.87) in women. Higher education was associated with reduced risk of mortality from lip, oral cavity, pharynx, oesophagus, stomach, colon and liver in both sexes. Higher education (university) was associated with decreased risk of lung cancer in men (MRR: 0.43, 95% CI 0.41; 0.46), but not in women (MRR: 1.00, 95% CI 0.92; 1.10). Highly educated women had a reduced risk of mortality from cervical cancer than lower educated women (MRR: 0.39, 95% CI 0.27; 0.56), but they had a similar risk for breast cancer (MRR: 1.01, 95% CI 0.94; 1.09). Education is inversely associated with total cancer mortality, and the association was stronger in men. Different patterns and trends in tobacco smoking in men and women account for at least most of the gender differences.

  11. Do racial inequities in infant mortality correspond to variations in societal conditions? A study of state-level income inequality in the U.S., 1992-2007.

    PubMed

    Siddiqi, Arjumand; Jones, Marcella K; Bruce, Donald J; Erwin, Paul C

    2016-09-01

    Prior studies have examined the association between income inequality and overall infant mortality rates (IMR). We examine effects of income inequality on racial inequities in IMR over the period 1992-2007 in the U.S. Race-specific state IMR data were obtained from 1992 to 2007, from which absolute and relative IMR inequities were calculated. Fixed and random effects models, adjusted for state-level median income, percent poverty, percent high school graduates, and unemployment rate, were used to determine contemporaneous and lagged state-level associations between income inequality and racial IMR inequities. Racial IMR inequities varied significantly across the U.S. Contemporaneous income inequality was negatively associated with white IMR only. Two-year lagged income inequality was negatively associated with black IMR and had the most pronounced effect on racial inequities in IMR. Future studies should consider lagged effects of income inequality on IMR and other health outcomes, and should examine other potential societal conditions that may account for state-level variations in racial IMR inequities. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Health inequalities in Ethiopia: modeling inequalities in length of life within and between population groups

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background and objectives Most studies on health inequalities use average measures, but describing the distribution of health can also provide valuable knowledge. In this paper, we estimate and compare within-group and between-group inequalities in length of life for population groups in Ethiopia in 2000 and 2011. Methods We used data from the 2011 and 2000 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey and the Global Burden of Disease study 2010, and the MODMATCH modified logit life table system developed by the World Health Organization to model mortality rates, life expectancy, and length of life for Ethiopian population groups stratified by wealth quintiles, gender and residence. We then estimated and compared within-group and between-group inequality in length of life using the Gini index and absolute length of life inequality. Results Length of life inequality has decreased and life expectancy has increased for all population groups between 2000 and 2011. Length of life inequality within wealth quintiles is about three times larger than the between-group inequality of 9 years. Total length of life inequality in Ethiopia was 27.6 years in 2011. Conclusion Longevity has increased and the distribution of health in Ethiopia is more equal in 2011 than 2000, with length of life inequality reduced for all population groups. Still there is considerable potential for further improvement. In the Ethiopian context with a poor and highly rural population, inequality in length of life within wealth quintiles is considerably larger than between them. This suggests that other factors than wealth substantially contribute to total health inequality in Ethiopia and that identification and quantification of these factors will be important for identifying proper measures to further reduce length of life inequality. PMID:23845045

  13. Gains in children's dental health differ by socioeconomic position: evidence of widening inequalities in southern Brazil.

    PubMed

    Kramer, Paulo Floriani; Chaffee, Benjamin W; Bertelli, Aline Estades; Ferreira, Simone Helena; Béria, Jorge Umberto; Feldens, Carlos Alberto

    2015-11-01

    Oral health inequalities are the measures by which equity in oral health is tracked. Despite widespread improvement in children's dental health globally, substantial socio-economic disparities persist and may be worsening. Quantify 10-year changes in child caries occurrence by socio-economic position in a Southern Brazilian city and compare oral health inequalities over time. Representative surveys of dental caries in children (age <6 years) in Canoas, Brazil, were conducted in 2000 and 2010 following standardized methods. For each survey year, we calculated disparities by socio-economic position (maternal education and family income) in age- and sex-standardized caries occurrence (prevalence: dmft > 0; severity: mean dmft) using absolute measures (difference and Slope Index of Inequality) and relative measures (ratio and Relative Index of Inequality). Comparing 2010 to 2000, caries occurrence was lower in all socio-economic strata. However, reductions were more pronounced among socio-economically advantaged groups, yielding no improvement in children's oral health disparities. Some disparity indicators were consistent with increasing inequality. Overall, dental caries levels among children in Canoas improved, but inequalities in disease distribution endured. Concerted public health efforts targeting socio-economically disadvantaged groups are needed to achieve greater equity in children's oral health. © 2014 BSPD, IAPD and John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  14. Household income, income inequality, and health-related quality of life measured by the EQ-5D in Shaanxi, China: a cross-sectional study.

    PubMed

    Tan, Zhijun; Shi, Fuyan; Zhang, Haiyue; Li, Ning; Xu, Yongyong; Liang, Ying

    2018-03-14

    In advanced economies, economic factors have been found to be associated with many health outcomes, including health-related quality of life (HRQL), and people's health is affected more by income inequality than by absolute income. However, few studies have examined the association of income inequality and absolute income with HRQL in transitional economies using individual data. This paper focuses on the effects of county or district income inequality and absolute income on the HRQL measured by EQ-5D and the differences between rural and urban regions in Shaanxi province, China. Data were collected from the 2008 National Health Service Survey conducted in Shaanxi, China. The EQ-5D index based on Japanese weights was employed as a health indicator. The income inequality was calculated on the basis of self-reported income. The special requirements for complex survey data analysis were considered in the bivariate analysis and linear regression models. The mean of the EQ-5D index was 94.6. The EQ-5D index of people with low income was lower than that in the high-income group (for people in the rural region: 93.2 v 96.1, P < 0.01; for people in the urban region: 95.5 v 96.8, P < 0.01). Compared with people with moderate inequality, the EQ-5D index of those with high inequality was relatively lower (for people living in the rural region: 91.1 v 95.8, P < 0.01; for people living in the urban region: 95.6 v 97.3, P < 0.01). Adjusted by age, gender, education, marital status, employment, medical insurance, and chronic disease, all the coefficients of the low-income group and high income inequality were significantly negative. After stratifying by income group, all the effects of high income inequality remained negative in both income groups. However, the coefficients of the models in the high income group were not statistically significant. Income inequality has damaging effects on HRQL in Shaanxi, China, especially for people with low income. In addition

  15. Explaining Social Class Inequalities in Educational Achievement in the UK: Quantifying the Contribution of Social Class Differences in School "Effectiveness"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hobbs, Graham

    2016-01-01

    There are large social class inequalities in educational achievement in the UK. This paper quantifies the contribution of one mechanism to the production of these inequalities: social class differences in school "effectiveness," where "effectiveness" refers to a school's impact on pupils' educational achievement (relative to…

  16. Perspectives on Busing. Inequality in Education, Number Eleven, March 1972.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA. Center for Law and Education.

    Contents of this issue of "Inequality in Education" include: (1) "Busing is not the issue," Reubin Askew, Governor of Florida; (2) "Pupil transportation: a brief history," Paul V. Smith; (3) "White parents' fears," Patricia Derian, which discusses the desegregation of the schools in Jackson, Mississippi in the late 1960's from the point of view of…

  17. Income inequality and sexually transmitted in the United States: who bears the burden?

    PubMed

    Harling, Guy; Subramanian, S V; Bärnighausen, Till; Kawachi, Ichiro

    2014-02-01

    Three causal processes have been proposed to explain associations between group income inequality and individual health outcomes, each of which implies health effects for different segments of the population. We present a novel conceptual and analytic framework for the quantitative evaluation of these pathways, assessing the contribution of: (i) absolute deprivation - affecting the poor in all settings - using family income; (ii) structural inequality - affecting all those in unequal settings - using the Gini coefficient; and (iii) relative deprivation - affecting only the poor in unequal settings - using the Yitzhaki index. We conceptualize relative deprivation as the interaction of absolute deprivation and structural inequality. We test our approach using hierarchical models of 11,183 individuals in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). We examine the relationship between school-level inequality and sexually transmitted infections (STI) - self-reported or laboratory-confirmed Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea or Trichomoniasis. Results suggest that increased poverty and inequality were both independently associated with STI diagnosis, and that being poor in an unequal community imposed an additional risk. However, the effects of inequality and relative deprivation were confounded by individuals' race/ethnicity. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Mother's education is the most important factor in socio-economic inequality of child stunting in Iran.

    PubMed

    Emamian, Mohammad Hassan; Fateh, Mansooreh; Gorgani, Neman; Fotouhi, Akbar

    2014-09-01

    Malnutrition is one of the most important health problems, especially in developing countries. The present study aimed to describe the socio-economic inequality in stunting and its determinants in Iran for the first time. Cross-sectional, population-based survey, carried out in 2009. Using randomized cluster sampling, weight and height of children were measured and anthropometric indices were calculated based on child growth standards given by the WHO. Socio-economic status of families was determined using principal component analysis on household assets and social specifications of families. The concentration index was used to calculate socio-economic inequality in stunting and its determinants were measured by decomposition of this index. Factors affecting the gap between socio-economic groups were recognized by using the Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition method. Shahroud District in north-eastern Iran. Children (n 1395) aged <6 years. The concentration index for socio-economic inequality in stunting was -0·1913. Mother's education contributed 70 % in decomposition of this index. Mean height-for-age Z-score was -0·544 and -0·335 for low and high socio-economic groups, respectively. Mother's education was the factor contributing most to the gap between these two groups. There was a significant socio-economic inequality in the studied children. If mother's education is distributed equally in all the different groups of Iranian society, one can expect to eliminate 70 % of the socio-economic inequalities. Even in high socio-economic groups, the mean height-for-age Z-score was lower than the international standards. These issues emphasize the necessity of applying new interventions especially for the improvement of maternal education.

  19. Trends in income-related inequality in untreated caries among children in the United States: findings from NHANES I, NHANES III, and NHANES 1999-2004.

    PubMed

    Capurro, Diego Alberto; Iafolla, Timothy; Kingman, Albert; Chattopadhyay, Amit; Garcia, Isabel

    2015-12-01

    The goal of this analysis was to describe income-related inequality in untreated caries among children in the United States over time. The analysis focuses on children ages 2-12 years in three nationally representative U.S. surveys: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1971-1974, NHANES 1988-1994, and NHANES 1999-2004. The outcome of interest is untreated dental caries. Various methods are employed to measure absolute and relative inequality within each survey such as pair-wise comparisons, measures of association (odds ratios), and three summary measures of overall inequality: the slope index of inequality, the relative index of inequality, and the concentration index. Inequality trends are then assessed by comparing these estimates across the three surveys. Inequality was present in each of the three surveys analyzed. Whether measured on an absolute or relative scale, untreated caries disproportionately affected those with lower income. Trend analysis shows that, despite population-wide reductions in untreated caries between NHANES I and NHANES III, overall absolute inequality slightly increased, while overall relative inequality significantly increased. Between NHANES III and NHANES 1999-2004, both absolute and relative inequality tended to decrease; however, these changes were not statistically significant. Socioeconomic inequality in oral health is an important measure of progress in overall population health and a key input to inform health policies. This analysis shows the presence of socioeconomic inequality in oral health in the American child population, as well as changes in its magnitude over time. Further research is needed to determine the factors related to these changes and their relative contribution to inequality trends. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. Measuring Education Inequalities: Concentration and Dispersion-Based Approach. Lessons from Kuznets Curve in MENA Region

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ibourk, Aomar; Amaghouss, Jabrane

    2012-01-01

    Although the quantity of education is widely used to measure the economical and social performances of educative systems, only a few works have addressed the issue of equity in education. In this work, we have calculated two measures of inequality in education based on Barro and Lee's (2010) data: the Gini index of education and the standard…

  1. Pathways of equality through education: impact of gender (in)equality and maternal education on exclusive breastfeeding among natives and migrants in Belgium.

    PubMed

    Vanderlinden, Karen; Van de Putte, Bart

    2017-04-01

    Even though breastfeeding is typically considered the preferred feeding method for infants worldwide, in Belgium, breastfeeding rates remain low across native and migrant groups while the underlying determinants are unclear. Furthermore, research examining contextual effects, especially regarding gender (in)equality and ideology, has not been conducted. We hypothesized that greater gender equality scores in the country of origin will result in higher breastfeeding chances. Because gender equality does not operate only at the contextual level but can be mediated through individual level resources, we hypothesized the following for maternal education: higher maternal education will be an important positive predictor for exclusive breastfeeding chances in Belgium, but its effects will differ over subsequent origin countries. Based on IKAROS data (GeÏntegreerd Kind Activiteiten en Regio Ondersteunings Systeem), we perform multilevel analyses on 27 936 newborns. Feeding method is indicated by exclusive breastfeeding 3 months after childbirth. We measure gender (in)equality using Global Gender Gap scores from the mother's origin country. Maternal education is a metric variable based on International Standard Classification of Education indicators. Results show that 3.6% of the variation in breastfeeding can be explained by differences between the migrant mother's country of origin. However, the effect of gender (in)equality appears to be non-significant. After adding maternal education, the effect for origin countries scoring low on gender equality turns significant. Maternal education on its own shows strong positive association with exclusive breastfeeding and, furthermore, has different effects for different origin countries. Possible explanations are discussed in-depth setting direction for further research regarding the different pathways gender (in)equality and maternal education affect breastfeeding. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons

  2. Educational inequalities in self-rated health: whether post-socialist Estonia and Russia are performing better than 'Scandinavian' Finland.

    PubMed

    Vöörmann, Rein; Helemäe, Jelena

    2015-03-01

    The aim of the study is to analyse relationship between self-rated health (SRH) and education in post-socialist countries (Estonia and Russia) and in Finland, a Scandinavian country. Data from the 5th wave of the European Social Survey (ESS) carried out in 2010 were used. In particular, we used a sub-sample of the 25-69 years old. Two-step analysis was carried out: descriptive overview of relationship between SRH and education to assess the knowledge-related impact of education on SRH in pooled model for all three countries; and logistic regression analysis to evaluate separate models in each country. The prevalence of at-least-good health was the highest in Finland, Estonia occupied the second position and Russia the third. Knowledge-related educational inequalities were lower in Russia compared to Finland, while they were of similar magnitude in Estonia and Finland. Our expectations that knowledge-based inequalities are lower in post-socialist countries compared to a Scandinavian country turn to be true in case of Russia, not Estonia. Possible reasons for the expectations might be a lack of attention paid to educational inequalities in terms of access to social resources, competitiveness in the labour market and to what extent education provide a tool against uncertainty (preventing work- and unemployment-related stress). Series of comparative studies revealing links between certain institutional packages and (socio-economic and knowledge-related) educational inequalities seem to be of special relevance.

  3. Educational Inequalities among Latin American Adolescents: Continuities and Changes over the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s.

    PubMed

    Marteleto, Letícia; Gelber, Denisse; Hubert, Celia; Salinas, Viviana

    2012-09-01

    The goal of this paper is to examine recent trends in educational stratification for Latin American adolescents growing up in three distinct periods: the 1980s, during severe recession; the 1990s, a period of structural adjustments imposed by international organizations; and the late 2000s, when most countries in the region experienced positive and stable growth. In addition to school enrollment and educational transitions, we examine the quality of education through enrollment in private schools, an important aspect of inequality in education that most studies have neglected. We use nationally representative household survey data for the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s in Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Uruguay. Our overall findings confirm the importance of macroeconomic conditions for inequalities in educational opportunity, suggesting important benefits brought up by the favorable conditions of the 2000s. However, our findings also call attention to increasing disadvantages associated with the quality of the education adolescents receive, suggesting the significance of the EMI framework-Effectively Maintained Inequality-and highlighting the value of examining the quality in addition to the quantity of education in order to fully understand educational stratification in the Latin American context.

  4. Educational inequalities in TV viewing among older adults: a mediation analysis of ecological factors.

    PubMed

    De Cocker, Katrien; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse; Teychenne, Megan; McNaughton, Sarah; Salmon, Jo

    2013-12-19

    Television (TV) viewing, a prevalent leisure-time sedentary behaviour independently related to negative health outcomes, appears to be higher in less educated and older adults. In order to tackle the social inequalities, evidence is needed about the underlying mechanisms of the association between education and TV viewing. The present purpose was to examine the potential mediating role of personal, social and physical environmental factors in the relationship between education and TV viewing among Australian 55-65 year-old adults. In 2010, self-reported data was collected among 4082 adults (47.6% men) across urban and rural areas of Victoria, for the Wellbeing, Eating and Exercise for a Long Life (WELL) study. The mediating role of personal (body mass index [BMI], quality of life), social (social support from family and friends, social participation at proximal level, and interpersonal trust, social cohesion, personal safety at distal level) and physical environmental (neighbourhood aesthetics, neighbourhood physical activity environment, number of televisions) factors in the association between education and TV viewing time was examined using the product-of-coefficients test of MacKinnon based on multilevel linear regression analyses (conducted in 2012). Multiple mediating analyses showed that BMI (p ≤ 0.01), personal safety (p < 0.001), neighbourhood aesthetics (p ≤ 0.01) and number of televisions (p ≤ 0.01) partly explained the educational inequalities in older adult's TV viewing. No proximal social factors mediated the education-TV viewing association. Interventions aimed to reduce TV viewing should focus on personal (BMI) and environmental (personal safety, neighbourhood aesthetics, number of televisions) factors, in order to overcome educational inequalities in sedentary behaviour among older adults.

  5. Educational Inequalities in Health Behaviors at Midlife: Is There a Role for Early-life Cognition?

    PubMed

    Clouston, Sean A P; Richards, Marcus; Cadar, Dorina; Hofer, Scott M

    2015-09-01

    Education is a fundamental cause of social inequalities in health because it influences the distribution of resources, including money, knowledge, power, prestige, and beneficial social connections, that can be used in situ to influence health. Recent studies have highlighted early-life cognition as commonly indicating the propensity for educational attainment and determining health and age of mortality. Health behaviors provide a plausible mechanism linking both education and cognition to later-life health and mortality. We examine the role of education and cognition in predicting smoking, heavy drinking, and physical inactivity at midlife using data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (N = 10,317), National Survey of Health and Development (N = 5,362), and National Childhood Development Study (N = 16,782). Adolescent cognition was associated with education but was inconsistently associated with health behaviors. Education, however, was robustly associated with improved health behaviors after adjusting for cognition. Analyses highlight structural inequalities over individual capabilities when studying health behaviors. © American Sociological Association 2015.

  6. Income Inequality, the Median Voter, and the Support for Public Education. NBER Working Paper No. 16097

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Corcoran, Sean; Evans, William N.

    2010-01-01

    Using a panel of U.S. school districts spanning 1970-2000, we examine the relationship between income inequality and fiscal support for public education. In contrast with recent theoretical and empirical work suggesting a negative relationship between inequality and public spending, we find results consistent with a median voter model, in which…

  7. Educational inequalities in falls mortality among older adults: population-based multiple cause of death data from Sweden.

    PubMed

    Ahmad Kiadaliri, Aliasghar; Turkiewicz, Aleksandra; Englund, Martin

    2018-01-01

    Falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries among elderly adults. While socioeconomic status including education is a well-documented predictor of many individual health outcomes including mortality, little is known about socioeconomic inequalities in falls mortality among adults. This study aimed to assess educational inequalities in falls mortality among older adults in Sweden using multiple cause of death data. All residents aged 50‒75 years in the Skåne region, Sweden, during 1998‒2013 (n=566 478) were followed until death, relocation outside Skåne or end of 2014. We identified any mention of falls on death certificates (n=1047). We defined three levels of education. We used an additive hazards model and Cox regression with age as time scale adjusted for marital status and country of birth to calculate slope and relative indices of inequality (SII/RII). We also computed the population attributable fraction of lower educational attainment. Analyses were performed separately for men and women. Both SII and RII revealed statistically significant educational inequalities in falls mortality among men in favour of high educated (SII (95% CI): 15.5 (9.8 to 21.3) per 100 000 person-years; RII: 2.19 (1.60 to 3.00)) but not among women. Among men, 34% (95% CI 19 to 46) of falls deaths were attributable to lower education. There was an inverse association between education and deaths from falls among men but not women. The results suggest that individual's education should be considered in falls reduction interventions. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  8. The Spatialization of Racial Inequity and Educational Opportunity:Rethinking the Rural/Urban Divide

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tieken, Mara Casey

    2017-01-01

    This analysis recounts and examines the history of American public education, focusing on the experiences of poor urban and rural students of color. Using the lens of critical race theory, it suggests that educational inequity is not just raced and classed but also spatialized--that is, embedded in and maintained through geography. The mechanisms…

  9. Contribution of smoking to socioeconomic inequalities in mortality: a study of 14 European countries, 1990-2004.

    PubMed

    Gregoraci, G; van Lenthe, F J; Artnik, B; Bopp, M; Deboosere, P; Kovács, K; Looman, C W N; Martikainen, P; Menvielle, G; Peters, F; Wojtyniak, B; de Gelder, R; Mackenbach, J P

    2017-05-01

    Smoking contributes to socioeconomic inequalities in mortality, but the extent to which this contribution has changed over time and driven widening or narrowing inequalities in total mortality remains unknown. We studied socioeconomic inequalities in smoking-attributable mortality and their contribution to inequalities in total mortality in 1990-1994 and 2000-2004 in 14 European countries. We collected, harmonised and standardised population-wide data on all-cause and lung-cancer mortality by age, gender, educational and occupational level in 14 European populations in 1990-1994 and 2000-2004. Smoking-attributable mortality was indirectly estimated using the Preston-Glei-Wilmoth method. In 2000-2004, smoking-attributable mortality was higher in lower socioeconomic groups in all countries among men, and in all countries except Spain, Italy and Slovenia, among women, and the contribution of smoking to socioeconomic inequalities in mortality varied between 19% and 55% among men, and between -1% and 56% among women. Since 1990-1994, absolute inequalities in smoking-attributable mortality and the contribution of smoking to inequalities in total mortality have decreased in most countries among men, but increased among women. In many European countries, smoking has become less important as a determinant of socioeconomic inequalities in mortality among men, but not among women. Inequalities in smoking remain one of the most important entry points for reducing inequalities in mortality. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  10. The Micropolitics of Educational Inequality: The Case of Teacher-Student Assignments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grissom, Jason A.; Kalogrides, Demetra; Loeb, Susanna

    2015-01-01

    Politics of education researchers have long recognized the role of micropolitics in school decision-making processes. We argue that investigating micropolitical dynamics is key to an important set of school decisions that are fundamental to inequities in access to high-quality teachers: assignments of teachers and students to classrooms. Focusing…

  11. Inequalities in multiple health outcomes by education, sex, and race in 93 US counties: Why we should measure them all

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Introduction Regular reporting of health inequalities is essential to monitoring progress of efforts to reduce health inequalities. While reporting of population health became increasingly common, reporting of a subpopulation group breakdown of each indicator of the health of the population is rarely a standard practice. This study reports education-, sex-, and race-related inequalities in four health outcomes in each of the selected 93 counties in the United States in a systematic and comparable manner. Methods This study is a cross-sectional analysis of large, publicly available data, 2008, 2009, and 2010 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Selected Metropolitan/Micropolitan Area Risk Trends (SMART) and 2008, 2009, and 2010 United States Birth Records from the National Vital Statistics System. The study population is American adults older than 25 years of age residing in the selected 93 counties, representing about 30% of the US population, roughly equally covering all geographic regions of the country. Main outcome measures are: (1) Attribute (group characteristic)-specific inequality: education-, sex-, or race-specific inequality in each of the four health outcomes (poor or fair health, poor physical health days, poor mental health days, and low birthweight) in each county; (2) Overall inequality: the average of these three attribute-specific inequalities for each health outcome in each county; and (3) Summary inequality in total morbidity: the weighted average of the overall inequalities across the four health outcomes in each county. Results The range of inequality across the counties differed considerably by health outcome; inequality in poor or fair health had the widest range and the highest median among inequalities in all health outcomes. In more than 70% of the counties, education-specific inequality was the largest in all health outcomes except for low birthweight. Conclusions It is feasible to extend population health reporting to

  12. Inequalities in multiple health outcomes by education, sex, and race in 93 US counties: why we should measure them all.

    PubMed

    Asada, Yukiko; Whipp, Alyce; Kindig, David; Billard, Beverly; Rudolph, Barbara

    2014-06-13

    Regular reporting of health inequalities is essential to monitoring progress of efforts to reduce health inequalities. While reporting of population health became increasingly common, reporting of a subpopulation group breakdown of each indicator of the health of the population is rarely a standard practice. This study reports education-, sex-, and race-related inequalities in four health outcomes in each of the selected 93 counties in the United States in a systematic and comparable manner. This study is a cross-sectional analysis of large, publicly available data, 2008, 2009, and 2010 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Selected Metropolitan/Micropolitan Area Risk Trends (SMART) and 2008, 2009, and 2010 United States Birth Records from the National Vital Statistics System. The study population is American adults older than 25 years of age residing in the selected 93 counties, representing about 30% of the US population, roughly equally covering all geographic regions of the country. Main outcome measures are: (1) Attribute (group characteristic)-specific inequality: education-, sex-, or race-specific inequality in each of the four health outcomes (poor or fair health, poor physical health days, poor mental health days, and low birthweight) in each county; (2) Overall inequality: the average of these three attribute-specific inequalities for each health outcome in each county; and (3) Summary inequality in total morbidity: the weighted average of the overall inequalities across the four health outcomes in each county. The range of inequality across the counties differed considerably by health outcome; inequality in poor or fair health had the widest range and the highest median among inequalities in all health outcomes. In more than 70% of the counties, education-specific inequality was the largest in all health outcomes except for low birthweight. It is feasible to extend population health reporting to include reporting of a subpopulation group

  13. Trends in Global Gender Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dorius, Shawn F.; Firebaugh, Glenn

    2010-01-01

    This study investigates trends in gender inequality throughout the world. Using data encompassing a large majority of the world's population, we examine trends in recent decades for key indicators of gender inequality in education, mortality, political representation and economic activity. We find that gender inequality is declining in virtually…

  14. A Multination Study of Socioeconomic Inequality in Expectations for Progression to Higher Education: The Role of Between-School Tracking and Ability Stratification

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Parker, Philip D.; Jerrim, John; Schoon, Ingrid; Marsh, Herbert W.

    2016-01-01

    Persistent inequalities in educational expectations across societies are a growing concern. Recent research has explored the extent to which inequalities in education are due to primary effects (i.e., achievement differentials) versus secondary effects (i.e., choice behaviors net of achievement). We explore educational expectations in order to…

  15. Socioeconomic inequalities in risk factors for non communicable diseases in low-income and middle-income countries: results from the World Health Survey

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Monitoring inequalities in non communicable disease risk factor prevalence can help to inform and target effective interventions. The prevalence of current daily smoking, low fruit and vegetable consumption, physical inactivity, and heavy episodic alcohol drinking were quantified and compared across wealth and education levels in low- and middle-income country groups. Methods This study included self-reported data from 232,056 adult participants in 48 countries, derived from the 2002–2004 World Health Survey. Data were stratified by sex and low- or middle-income country status. The main outcome measurements were risk factor prevalence rates reported by wealth quintile and five levels of educational attainment. Socioeconomic inequalities were measured using the slope index of inequality, reflecting differences in prevalence rates, and the relative index of inequality, reflecting the prevalence ratio between the two extremes of wealth or education accounting for the entire distribution. Data were adjusted for confounding factors: sex, age, marital status, area of residence, and country of residence. Results Smoking and low fruit and vegetable consumption were significantly higher among lower socioeconomic groups. The highest wealth-related absolute inequality was seen in smoking among men of low- income country group (slope index of inequality 23.0 percentage points; 95% confidence interval 19.6, 26.4). The slope index of inequality for low fruit and vegetable consumption across the entire distribution of education was around 8 percentage points in both sexes and both country income groups. Physical inactivity was less prevalent in populations of low socioeconomic status, especially in low-income countries (relative index of inequality: (men) 0.46, 95% confidence interval 0.33, 0.64; (women) 0.52, 95% confidence interval 0.42, 0.65). Mixed patterns were found for heavy drinking. Conclusions Disaggregated analysis of the prevalence of non

  16. Exploring the Relationship between Absolute and Relative Position and Late-Life Depression: Evidence from 10 European Countries

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ladin, Keren; Daniels, Norman; Kawachi, Ichiro

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: Socioeconomic inequality has been associated with higher levels of morbidity and mortality. This study explores the role of absolute and relative deprivation in predicting late-life depression on both individual and country levels. Design and Methods: Country- and individual-level inequality indicators were used in multivariate logistic…

  17. Global Trends in Adolescent Fertility, 1990-2012, in Relation to National Wealth, Income Inequalities, and Educational Expenditures.

    PubMed

    Santelli, John S; Song, Xiaoyu; Garbers, Samantha; Sharma, Vinit; Viner, Russell M

    2017-02-01

    National wealth, income inequalities, and expenditures on education can profoundly influence the health of a nation's women, children, and adolescents. We explored the association of trends in national socioeconomic status (SES) indicators with trends in adolescent birth rates (ABRs), by nation and region. An ecologic research design was employed using national-level data from the World Bank on birth rates per 1,000 women aged 15-19 years, national wealth (per capita gross domestic product or GDP), income inequality (Gini index), and expenditures on education as a percentage of GDP (EduExp). Data were available for 142 countries and seven regions for 1990-2012. Multiple linear regression for repeated measures with generalized estimating equations was used to examine independent associations. ABRs in 2012 varied >200-fold-with the highest rates in Sub-Saharan Africa and lowest rates in the Western Europe/Central Asia region. The median national ABR fell 40% from 72.4/1,000 in 1990 to 43.6/1,000 in 2012. The largest regional declines in ABR occurred in South Asia (70%), Europe/Central Asia (63%), and the Middle East/North Africa (53%)-regions with lower income inequality. In multivariable analyses considering change over time, ABRs were negatively associated with GDP and EduExp and positively associated with greater income inequality. ABRs have declined globally since 1990. Declines closely followed rising socioeconomic status and were greater where income inequalities were lower in 1990. Reducing poverty and income inequalities and increasing investments in education should be essential components of national policies to prevent adolescent childbearing. Copyright © 2016 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Educational inequalities in TV viewing among older adults: a mediation analysis of ecological factors

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Television (TV) viewing, a prevalent leisure-time sedentary behaviour independently related to negative health outcomes, appears to be higher in less educated and older adults. In order to tackle the social inequalities, evidence is needed about the underlying mechanisms of the association between education and TV viewing. The present purpose was to examine the potential mediating role of personal, social and physical environmental factors in the relationship between education and TV viewing among Australian 55–65 year-old adults. Methods In 2010, self-reported data was collected among 4082 adults (47.6% men) across urban and rural areas of Victoria, for the Wellbeing, Eating and Exercise for a Long Life (WELL) study. The mediating role of personal (body mass index [BMI], quality of life), social (social support from family and friends, social participation at proximal level, and interpersonal trust, social cohesion, personal safety at distal level) and physical environmental (neighbourhood aesthetics, neighbourhood physical activity environment, number of televisions) factors in the association between education and TV viewing time was examined using the product-of-coefficients test of MacKinnon based on multilevel linear regression analyses (conducted in 2012). Results Multiple mediating analyses showed that BMI (p ≤ 0.01), personal safety (p < 0.001), neighbourhood aesthetics (p ≤ 0.01) and number of televisions (p ≤ 0.01) partly explained the educational inequalities in older adult’s TV viewing. No proximal social factors mediated the education-TV viewing association. Conclusions Interventions aimed to reduce TV viewing should focus on personal (BMI) and environmental (personal safety, neighbourhood aesthetics, number of televisions) factors, in order to overcome educational inequalities in sedentary behaviour among older adults. PMID:24350830

  19. Inequality in Participation in Adult Learning and Education (ALE): Effects of Micro- and Macro-Level Factors through a Comparative Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeongwoo

    2017-01-01

    The objectives of this dissertation include describing and analyzing the patterns of inequality in ALE participation at both the micro and macro levels. Special attention is paid to social origins of individual adults and their association with two groups of macro-level factors, social inequality (income, education, and skill inequality) and…

  20. Compensatory Policies Attending Equality and Inequality in Mexico Educational Practice among Vulnerable Groups in Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Flores, René Pedroza; Monroy, Guadalupe Villalobos; Fabela, Ana María Reyes

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents an estimate of the prevalence of social inequality in accessing higher education among vulnerable groups in Mexico. Estimates were determined from statistical data provided by governmental agencies on the level of poverty among the Mexican population. In Mexico, the conditions of poverty and vulnerability while trying to access…

  1. Trends of relative and absolute socioeconomic equity in access to coronary revascularisations in 1995-2010 in Finland: a register study.

    PubMed

    Lumme, Sonja; Manderbacka, Kristiina; Keskimäki, Ilmo

    2017-02-20

    Resources for coronary revascularisations have increased substantially since the early 1990s in Finland. At the same time, ischaemic heart disease (IHD) mortality has decreased markedly. This study aims to examine how these changes have influenced trends in absolute and relative differences between socioeconomic groups in revascularisations and age group differences in them using IHD mortality as a proxy for need. Hospital Discharge Register data on revascularisations among Finns aged 45-84 in 1995-2010 were individually linked to population registers to obtain socio-demographic data. We measured absolute and relative income group differences in revascularisation and IHD mortality with slope index of inequality (SII) and concentration index (C), and relative equity taking need for care into account with horizontal inequity index (HII). The supply of procedures doubled during the years. Socioeconomic distribution of revascularisations was in absolute and relative terms equal in 1995 (Men: SII = -12, C = -0.00; Women, SII = -30, C = -0.03), but differences favouring low-income groups emerged by 2010 (M: SII = -340, C = -0.08; W: SII = -195, C = -0.14). IHD mortality decreased markedly, but absolute and relative differences favouring the better-off existed throughout study years. Absolute differences decreased somewhat (M: SII = -760 in 1995, SII = -681 in 2010; W: SII = -318 in 1995, SII = -211 in 2010), but relative differences increased significantly (M: C = -0.14 in 1995, C = -0.26 in 2010; W: C = -0.15 in 1995, C = -0.25 in 2010). HII was greater than zero in each year indicating inequity favouring the better-off. HII increased from 0.15 to 0.18 among men and from 0.10 to 0.12 among women. We found significant and increasing age group differences in HII. Despite large increase in supply of revascularisations and decrease in IHD mortality, there is still marked socioeconomic inequity in

  2. Health Inequalities in Global Context

    PubMed Central

    Beckfield, Jason; Olafsdottir, Sigrun

    2017-01-01

    The existence of social inequalities in health is well established. One strand of research focuses on inequalities in health within a single country. A separate and newer strand of research focuses on the relationship between inequality and average population health across countries. Despite the theorization of (presumably variable) social conditions as “fundamental causes” of disease and health, the cross-national literature has focused on average, aggregate population health as the central outcome. Controversies currently surround macro-structural determinants of overall population health such as income inequality. We advance and redirect these debates by conceptualizing inequalities in health as cross-national variables that are sensitive to social conditions. Using data from 48 World Values Survey countries, representing 74% of the world’s population, we examine cross-national variation in inequalities in health. The results reveal substantial variation in health inequalities according to income, education, sex, and migrant status. While higher socioeconomic position is associated with better self-rated health around the globe, the size of the association varies across institutional context, and across dimensions of stratification. There is some evidence that education and income are more strongly associated with self-rated health than sex or migrant status. PMID:29104292

  3. Anatomies of Inequality: Considering the Emotional Cost of Aiming Higher for Marginalised, Mature Mothers Re-Entering Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mannay, Dawn; Morgan, Melanie

    2013-01-01

    The "Anatomy of Economic Inequality in Wales" (2011) provides quantitative evidence for the pervasive nature of class-based inequalities in education, demonstrating that an individual in social housing is approximately 10 times less likely to be a graduate compared to those in other types of accommodation. This article moves beyond the…

  4. Growing Income Inequality Threatens American Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Duncan, Greg J.; Murnane, Richard J.

    2014-01-01

    The first of two articles in consecutive months describes the origins and nature of growing income inequality, and some of its consequences for American children. It documents the increased family income inequality that's occurred over the past 40 years and shows that the increased income disparity has been more than matched by an expanding…

  5. Regional Inequality of Higher Education in China and the Role of Unequal Economic Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bickenbach, Frank; Liu, Wan-Hsin

    2013-01-01

    Over the past decade the scale of higher education in China has expanded substantially. Regional development policies have attempted to make use of scale expansion as a tool to reduce inequality of higher education among regions with different development levels by providing poor regions with preferential treatment and support. This paper analyzes…

  6. Social inequalities in life expectancy and mortality during the transition period of economic crisis (1993–2010) in Korea

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Backgrounds This study examines social inequalities in life expectancy and mortality during the transition period of the Korean economic crisis (1993–2010) among Korean adults aged 40 and over. Methods Data from the census and the national death file from the Statistics Korea are employed to calculate life expectancy and age-specific-death-rates (ASDR) by age, gender, and educational attainment for five years: 1993, 1995, 2000, 2005, and 2010. Absolute and relative differences in life expectancy and Age-Specific Death Rates by educational attainment were utilized as proxy measures of social inequality. Results Clear educational gradient of life expectancy was observed at age 40 by both sexes and across five time periods (1993, 1995, 2000, 2005, and 2010). The gradient became notably worse in females between 1993 and 2010 compared to the trend in males. The educational gradient was also found for ASDR in all five years, but it was more pronounced in working age groups (40s and 50s) than in elderly groups. The relative disadvantage of ASDR among working age Korean adults, both males and females, became substantially worse over time. Conclusions Social inequalities in life expectancy and ASDR of the working age group across socioeconomic status over time were closely related to the widening of the social difference created by the macroeconomic crisis and the expansion of neo-liberalism in Korea. PMID:23171369

  7. Do Socioeconomic Inequalities in Neonatal Mortality Reflect Inequalities in Coverage of Maternal Health Services? Evidence from 48 Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

    PubMed

    McKinnon, Britt; Harper, Sam; Kaufman, Jay S

    2016-02-01

    To examine socioeconomic and health system determinants of wealth-related inequalities in neonatal mortality rates (NMR) across 48 low- and middle-income countries. We used data from Demographic and Health Surveys conducted between 2006 and 2012. Absolute and relative inequalities for NMR and coverage of antenatal care, facility-based delivery, and Caesarean delivery were measured using the Slope Index of Inequality and Relative Index of Inequality, respectively. Meta-regression was used to assess whether variation in the magnitude of NMR inequalities was associated with inequalities in coverage of maternal health services, and whether country-level economic and health system factors were associated with mean NMR and socioeconomic inequality in NMR. Of the three maternal health service indicators examined, the magnitude of socioeconomic inequality in NMR was most strongly related to inequalities in antenatal care. NMR inequality was greatest in countries with higher out-of-pocket health expenditures, more doctors per capita, and a higher adolescent fertility rate. Determinants of lower mean NMR (e.g., higher government health expenditures and a greater number of nurses/midwives per capita) differed from factors associated with lower NMR inequality. Reducing the financial burden of maternal health services and achieving universal coverage of antenatal care may contribute to a reduction in socioeconomic differences in NMR. Further investigation of the mechanisms contributing to these cross-national associations seems warranted.

  8. Is educational differentiation associated with smoking and smoking inequalities in adolescence? A multilevel analysis across 27 European and North American countries.

    PubMed

    Rathmann, Katharina; Moor, Irene; Kunst, Anton E; Dragano, Nico; Pförtner, Timo-Kolja; Elgar, Frank J; Hurrelmann, Klaus; Kannas, Lasse; Baška, Tibor; Richter, Matthias

    2016-09-01

    This study aims to determine whether educational differentiation (i.e. early and long tracking to different school types) relate to socioeconomic inequalities in adolescent smoking. Data were collected from the WHO-Collaborative 'Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC)' study 2005/2006, which included 48,025 15-year-old students (Nboys = 23,008, Ngirls = 25,017) from 27 European and North American countries. Socioeconomic position was measured using the HBSC family affluence scale. Educational differentiation was determined by the number of different school types, age of selection, and length of differentiated curriculum at the country-level. We used multilevel logistic regression to assess the association of daily smoking and early smoking initiation predicted by family affluence, educational differentiation, and their interactions. Socioeconomic inequalities in both smoking outcomes were larger in countries that are characterised by a lower degree of educational differentiation (e.g. Canada, Scandinavia and the United Kingdom) than in countries with higher levels of educational differentiation (e.g. Austria, Belgium, Hungary and The Netherlands). This study found that high educational differentiation does not relate to greater relative inequalities in smoking. Features of educational systems are important to consider as they are related to overall prevalence in smoking and smoking inequalities in adolescence. © 2016 Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness.

  9. Income inequality and educational assortative mating: Evidence from the Luxembourg Income Study.

    PubMed

    Monaghan, David

    2015-07-01

    Though extensive research has explored the prevalence of educational assortative mating, what causes its variation across countries and over time is not well understood. Using data from the Luxembourg Income Study Database, I investigate the hypothesis that assortative mating by income is influenced by income inequality between educational strata. I find that in countries with greater returns to education, the odds of any sort of union that crosses educational boundaries is substantially reduced. However, I do not find substantial evidence of an effect of changes in returns to education on marital sorting within countries. Educational and labor market parity between males and females appear to be negatively related to marital sorting. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Changes and inequalities in early birth registration and childhood care and education in Vietnam: findings from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, 2006 and 2011

    PubMed Central

    Giang, Kim Bao; Oh, Juhwan; Kien, Vu Duy; Hoat, Luu Ngoc; Choi, Sugy; Lee, Chul Ou; Van Minh, Hoang

    2016-01-01

    Introduction Early birth registration, childhood care, and education are essential rights for children and are important for their development and education. This study investigates changes and socioeconomic inequalities in early birth registration and indicators of care and education in children aged under 5 years in Vietnam. Design The analyses reported here used data from the Vietnam Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) in 2006 and 2011. The sample sizes in 2006 and 2011 were 2,680 and 3,678 for children under 5 years of age. Four indicators of childcare and preschool education were measured: birth registration, possession of books, preschool education attendance, and parental support for early childhood education. The concentration index (CI) was used to measure inequalities in gender, maternal education, geographical area, place of residence, ethnicity, and household wealth. Results There were some improvements in birth registration (86.4% in 2006; 93.8% in 2011), preschool education attendance (57.1% in 2006; 71.9% in 2011), and parental support for early childhood education (68.9 and 76.8%, respectively). However, the possession of books was lower (24.7% in 2006; 19.6% in 2011) and became more unequal over time (i.e. CI=0.370 in 2006; CI=0.443 in 2011 in wealth inequality). Inequalities in the care and education of children were still persistent. The largest inequalities were for household wealth and rural versus urban areas. Conclusion Although there have been some improvements in this area, inequalities still exist. Policy efforts in Vietnam should be directed towards closing the gap between different socioeconomic groups for the care and education of children under 5 years old. PMID:26950564

  11. The role of the built environment in explaining educational inequalities in walking and cycling among adults in the Netherlands.

    PubMed

    van Wijk, Daniël C; Groeniger, Joost Oude; van Lenthe, Frank J; Kamphuis, Carlijn B M

    2017-03-31

    This study examined whether characteristics of the residential built environment (i.e. population density, level of mixed land use, connectivity, accessibility of facilities, accessibility of green) contributed to educational inequalities in walking and cycling among adults. Data from participants (32-82 years) of the 2011 survey of the Dutch population-based GLOBE study were used (N = 2375). Highest attained educational level (independent variable) and walking for transport, cycling for transport, walking in leisure time and cycling in leisure time (dependent variables) were self-reported in the survey. GIS-systems were used to obtain spatial data on residential built environment characteristics. A four-step mediation-based analysis with log-linear regression models was used to examine to contribution of the residential built environment to educational inequalities in walking and cycling. As compared to the lowest educational group, the highest educational group was more likely to cycle for transport (RR 1.13, 95% CI 1.04-1.23), walk in leisure time (RR 1.12, 95% CI 1.04-1.21), and cycle in leisure time (RR 1.12, 95% CI 1.03-1.22). Objective built environment characteristics were related to these outcomes, but contributed minimally to educational inequalities in walking and cycling. On the other hand, compared to the lowest educational group, the highest educational group was less likely to walk for transport (RR 0.91, 95% CI 0.82-1.01), which could partly be attributed to differences in the built environment. This study found that objective built environment characteristics contributed minimally to educational inequalities in walking and cycling in the Netherlands.

  12. The population attributable fraction of low education for mortality in South Korea with improvement in educational attainment and no improvement in mortality inequalities.

    PubMed

    Lim, Dohee; Kong, Kyoung Ae; Lee, Hye Ah; Lee, Won Kyung; Park, Su Hyun; Baik, Sun Jung; Park, Hyesook; Jung-Choi, Kyunghee

    2015-03-31

    The educational attainment of Koreans has greatly increased, which was expected to reduce the magnitude of the population attributable fraction (PAF) of mortality associated with low education levels. However, increase in the relative risk (RR) of mortality among those with lower educational levels actually increased the PAF. The purpose of this study was to examine the change in the PAF of lower educational levels for mortality in Korea, where educational attainment has improved and is associated with the exacerbation of inequalities in mortality levels. National census data were used to derive educational levels. The mortality-associated RR of lower educational levels was calculated by reference to national census and death certificate data from 1995, 2000, 2005, and 2010. PAFs were calculated for all-cause mortality, malignant neoplasms, cerebrovascular disease, heart disease, and suicide by gender and age group (30-44 and 45-59 years). The PAF of low educational level in terms of total mortality has decreased since 1995 in both genders. This trend was more prominent among those aged 30-44 years. However, the PAFs of suicide in younger females (30-44 years) and of cerebrovascular disease in older males (45-59 years) have increased. The RRs of all-cause mortality and those of the four leading causes of death in those with the lowest educational levels have increased, especially in females aged 30-44 years. The consistent and sharp increase in the attainment of education has contributed to the reduction in the PAFs of lower education for mortality, despite the fact that mortality inequalities have not improved. Efforts to reduce health inequalities must promote healthy public policy and address public health policies.

  13. What fosters concern for inequality among American adolescents?

    PubMed

    Cech, Erin A

    2017-01-01

    Understanding cultural beliefs about social and economic inequality is vital to discerning the roadblocks and pathways to addressing that inequality. The foundation of concern for inequality is laid during adolescence, yet scholars understand little about the factors that influence whether and how adolescents come to express such concern. Arguing that structural and cultural contexts are just as consequential as whether adolescents themselves are members of disadvantaged groups, I draw on four theoretical perspectives to identify factors that influence adolescents' concern for addressing inequality: the underdog thesis, intergroup contact theory, the education enlightens thesis, and ideological buttressing. Using representative restricted-use Educational Longitudinal Survey data, I find that 12th-graders' beliefs are indeed influenced by more than their own demography: the diversity of their social milieu, the content of education in and out of the classroom, and ideological buttressing via political region and entertainment all influence whether they express concern for addressing inequality. These findings suggest extensions and amendments to the four theoretical perspectives and underscore the importance of studying structural and cultural factors that shape beliefs about inequality. The results also point to several interventions that may increase students' concern for inequality: involvement in civic-oriented extracurricular activities, more education in academic subjects that consider inequality, nurturing of cross-race friendships, and increased leisure reading. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Socioeconomic Inequality in Childhood Obesity.

    PubMed

    Moradi, Ghobad; Mostafavi, Farideh; Azadi, Namamali; Esmaeilnasab, Nader; Ghaderi, Ebrahim

    2017-08-15

    The aim of this study was to assess the socioeconomic inequalities in obesity and overweight in children aged 10 to 12 yr old. A cross-sectional study. This study was conducted on 2506 children aged 10 to 12 yr old in the city of Sanandaj, western Iran in 2015. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Considering household situation and assets, socioeconomic status (SES) of the subjects was determined using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Concentration Index was used to measure inequality and Oaxaca decomposition was used to determine the share of different determinants of inequality. The prevalence of overweight was 24.1% (95% CI: 22.4, 25.7). 11.5% (95% CI: 10.0, 12.0) were obese. The concentration index for overweight and obesity, respectively, was 0.10 (95% CI: 0.05, 0.15), and 0.07 (95% CI:0.00, 0.14) which indicated inequality and a higher prevalence of obesity and overweight in higher SES. The results of Oaxaca decomposition suggested that socioeconomic factors accounted for 75.8% of existing inequalities. Residential area and mother education were the most important causes of inequality. To reduce inequalities in childhood obesity, mother education must be promoted and special attention must be paid to residential areas and children gender.

  15. School Inequality and the Welfare State.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Owen, John D.

    This book begins with an examination of school inequality in the United States. The discussion focuses successively on the issues of: the paradox of unequal schools in a welfare state, the distribution of educational resources in American cities: some new empirical evidence, inequalities in the allocation of educational resources among cities and…

  16. Post-millennial trends of socioeconomic inequalities in chronic illness among adults in Germany.

    PubMed

    Hoebel, Jens; Kuntz, Benjamin; Moor, Irene; Kroll, Lars Eric; Lampert, Thomas

    2018-03-27

    Time trends in health inequalities have scarcely been studied in Germany as only few national data have been available. In this paper, we explore trends in socioeconomic inequalities in the prevalence of chronic illness using Germany-wide data from four cross-sectional health surveys conducted between 2003 and 2012 (n = 54,197; ages 25-69 years). We thereby expand a prior analysis on post-millennial inequality trends in behavioural risk factors by turning the focus to chronic illness as the outcome measure. The regression-based slope index of inequality (SII) and relative index of inequality (RII) were calculated to estimate the extent of absolute and relative socioeconomic inequalities in chronic illness, respectively. The results for men revealed a significant increase in the extent of socioeconomic inequalities in chronic illness between 2003 and 2012 on both the absolute and relative scales (SII 2003  = 0.06, SII 2012  = 0.17, p-trend = 0.013; RII 2003  = 1.18, RII 2012  = 1.57, p-trend = 0.013). In women, similar increases in socioeconomic inequalities in chronic illness were found (SII 2003  = 0.05, SII 2012  = 0.14, p-trend = 0.022; RII 2003  = 1.14, RII 2012  = 1.40, p-trend = 0.021). Whereas in men this trend was driven by an increasing prevalence of chronic illness in the low socioeconomic group, the trend in women was predominantly the result of a declining prevalence in the high socioeconomic group.

  17. Community-Level Inequalities in Concussion Education of Youth Football Coaches.

    PubMed

    Kroshus, Emily; Kerr, Zachary Y; Lee, Joseph G L

    2017-04-01

    USA Football has made the Heads Up Football (HUF) concussion education program available for coaches of youth football players. Existing evidence about the effectiveness of the HUF coach education program is equivocal. For HUF and other programs, there is growing concern that even effective interventions can increase inequalities if there is different uptake or impact by SES or other demographic factors. Understanding how adoption is patterned along these lines is important for understanding equity issues in youth football. This study tested the hypothesis that there will be lower adoption of HUF among coaches of youth football players in lower-SES communities. The authors conducted a cross-sectional study of the association between community-level characteristics and number of USA Football youth league coaches who have completed HUF. Data were collected in 2014 and analyzed in 2015-2016. Implementation of the HUF program was patterned by community-level socioeconomic characteristics. Leagues located in communities with a higher percentage of families with children aged <18 years living below the poverty line and a smaller percentage of non-Hispanic white residents tended to have leagues with smaller percentages of HUF-certified coaches. As interventions are developed that reduce the risks of youth football, it is important to consider not just the effectiveness of these interventions, but also whether they reduce or exacerbate health inequities. These results suggest that relying on voluntary adoption of coach education may result in inequitable implementation. Further study is required to identify and remedy organizational and contextual barriers to implementation of coach education in youth sport. Copyright © 2017 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. `Membership Has Its Privileges': Status Incentives and Categorical Inequality in Education

    PubMed Central

    Domina, Thurston; Penner, Andrew M.; Penner, Emily K.

    2015-01-01

    Prizes – formal systems that publicly allocate rewards for exemplary behavior – play an increasingly important role in a wide array of social settings, including education. In this paper, we evaluate a prize system designed to boost achievement at two high schools by assigning students color-coded ID cards based on a previously low stakes test. Average student achievement on this test increased in the ID card schools beyond what one would expect from contemporaneous changes in neighboring schools. However, regression discontinuity analyses indicate that the program created new inequalities between students who received low-status and high-status ID cards. These findings indicate that status-based incentives create categorical inequalities between prize winners and others even as they reorient behavior toward the goals they reward. PMID:27213170

  19. [Social inequalities in adolescent smoking: A cross-national perspective of the role of individual and macro-structural factors].

    PubMed

    Pförtner, Timo-Kolja; Rathmann, Katharina; Moor, Irene; Kunst, Anton E; Richter, Matthias

    2016-02-01

    In an EU-funded project, we examined on the basis of international comparative analyses which factors were associated with and contributed to socioeconomic inequalities in adolescent smoking. This paper presents the results obtained and discusses their implications for policy and research. Analyses were based on the "Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC)" study in 2006 and included more than 50,000 adolescents from 37 countries. The focus was on the association between family affluence and weekly smoking (regularly, at least once a week) among adolescents. Explanatory variables at the individual level refer to psychosocial resources and burdens of school, family, and peers. At the country level, national income, various tobacco control policies, and an index of external differentiation of the educational system were used. The psychosocial factors of school and family explained many of the inequalities in the smoking behavior of adolescents. In an international comparison, socioeconomic inequalities in smoking were stronger in richer countries. Absolute smoking rates were lower and inequalities in smoking smaller for boys in countries with higher tobacco prices. On the other hand, educational systems with higher degrees of external differentiation showed lower inequalities in smoking beahviour by girls, and relatively higher rates of smoking (for boys and girls). Stronger inequalities in smoking behaviour were demonstrated in countries with a greater range of preventative measures for tobacco dependence (for boys) and with higher levels of government spending on tobacco control (for girls). Experiences in richer countries revealed that tobacco control needs to be strengthened for socially disadvantaged adolescents. The reduction of smoking prevalence and socioeconomic inequalities in smoking behavior should be based not only on a strengthening of psychosocial resources in the family and at school, but also on an increase in tobacco prices.

  20. Mother's education and offspring asthma risk in 10 European cohort studies.

    PubMed

    Lewis, Kate Marie; Ruiz, Milagros; Goldblatt, Peter; Morrison, Joana; Porta, Daniela; Forastiere, Francesco; Hryhorczuk, Daniel; Zvinchuk, Oleksandr; Saurel-Cubizolles, Marie-Josephe; Lioret, Sandrine; Annesi-Maesano, Isabella; Vrijheid, Martine; Torrent, Maties; Iniguez, Carmen; Larranaga, Isabel; Harskamp-van Ginkel, Margreet W; Vrijkotte, Tanja G M; Klanova, Jana; Svancara, Jan; Barross, Henrique; Correia, Sofia; Jarvelin, Marjo-Riitta; Taanila, Anja; Ludvigsson, Johnny; Faresjo, Tomas; Marmot, Michael; Pikhart, Hynek

    2017-09-01

    Highly prevalent and typically beginning in childhood, asthma is a burdensome disease, yet the risk factors for this condition are not clarified. To enhance understanding, this study assessed the cohort-specific and pooled risk of maternal education on asthma in children aged 3-8 across 10 European countries. Data on 47,099 children were obtained from prospective birth cohort studies across 10 European countries. We calculated cohort-specific prevalence difference in asthma outcomes using the relative index of inequality (RII) and slope index of inequality (SII). Results from all countries were pooled using random-effects meta-analysis procedures to obtain mean RII and SII scores at the European level. Final models were adjusted for child sex, smoking during pregnancy, parity, mother's age and ethnicity. The higher the score the greater the magnitude of relative (RII, reference 1) and absolute (SII, reference 0) inequity. The pooled RII estimate for asthma risk across all cohorts was 1.46 (95% CI 1.26, 1.71) and the pooled SII estimate was 1.90 (95% CI 0.26, 3.54). Of the countries examined, France, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands had the highest prevalence's of childhood asthma and the largest inequity in asthma risk. Smaller inverse associations were noted for all other countries except Italy, which presented contradictory scores, but with small effect sizes. Tests for heterogeneity yielded significant results for SII scores. Overall, offspring of mothers with a low level of education had an increased relative and absolute risk of asthma compared to offspring of high-educated mothers.

  1. Confronting the Labor Problem in Catholic Higher Education: Applying Catholic Social Teaching in an Age of Increasing Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McCartin, Joseph A.

    2018-01-01

    Over the past four decades, the United States has witnessed the rise of an economy of growing inequality and exploitation, and this economic transformation has entangled Catholic institutions of higher education in what Pope Francis has called "an economy of exclusion and inequality." In recent years, some institutions have taken steps…

  2. What Are the Causes of Educational Inequality and of Its Evolution over Time in Europe? Evidence from PISA

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oppedisano, Veruska; Turati, Gilberto

    2015-01-01

    This paper provides evidence on the sources of differences in inequality in educational scores and their evolution over time in four European countries. Using Programme for International Student Assessment data from the 2000 and the 2006 waves, the paper shows that inequality decreased in Germany and Spain (two "decentralised" schooling…

  3. Public smoking ban and socioeconomic inequalities in smoking prevalence and cessation: a cross-sectional population-based study in Geneva, Switzerland (1995-2014).

    PubMed

    Sandoval, José Luis; Leão, Teresa; Cullati, Stéphane; Theler, Jean-Marc; Joost, Stéphane; Humair, Jean-Paul; Gaspoz, Jean-Michel; Guessous, Idris

    2018-01-26

    Smoking bans were suggested to reduce smoking prevalence and increase quit ratio but their equity impact remains unclear. We aimed to characterise the socioeconomic status (SES)-related inequalities in smoking prevalence and quit ratio before and after the implementation of a public smoking ban. We included data from 17 544 participants in the population-based cross-sectional Bus Santé study in Geneva, Switzerland, between 1995 and 2014. We considered educational attainment (primary, secondary and tertiary) as a SES indicator. Outcomes were smoking prevalence (proportion of current smokers) and quit ratio (ex-smokers to ever-smokers ratio). We used segmented linear regression to assess the overall impact of smoking ban on outcome trends. We calculated the relative (RII) and slope (SII, absolute difference) indexes of inequality, quantifying disparities between educational groups in outcomes overall (1995-2014), before and after ban implementation (November 2009). Least educated participants displayed higher smoking prevalence (RII=2.04, P<0.001; SII=0.15, P<0.001) and lower quit ratio (RII=0.73, P<0.001; SII=-0.18, P<0.001). As in other studies, smoking ban implementation coincided with a temporary reduction of smoking prevalence (P=0.003) and increase in quit ratio (P=0.02), with a progressive return to preban levels. Inequalities increased (P<0.05) in relative terms for smoking prevalence (RII before =1.84, P<0.001 and RII after =3.01, P<0.001) and absolute terms for both outcomes (smoking prevalence: SII before =0.14, P<0.001 and SII after =0.19, P<0.001; quit ratio: SII before =-0.15, P<0.001 and SII after =-0.27, P<0.001). Implementation of a public smoking ban coincided with a short-lived decrease in smoking prevalence and increase in quit ratio but also with a widening in SES inequalities in smoking-related outcomes. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No

  4. A Capital or Capabilities Education Narrative in a World of Staggering Inequalities?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walker, Melanie

    2012-01-01

    In a world of tremendous inequalities, this paper explores two contrasting normative models for education policy, and the relationship of each to policy, practices and outcomes that can improve lives by reducing injustice and building societies which value capabilities for all. The first model is that of human capital which currently dominates…

  5. Challenging Gender Inequalities in Education and in Working Life--A Mission Possible?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brunila, Kristiina; Ylöstalo, Hanna

    2015-01-01

    This article deals with challenging the gender inequalities that exist in education and working life. It contemplates the kinds of discursive power relations that have led to gender equality work in Finland. In today's conditions where equality issues are being harnessed more strongly to serve the aims of economic efficiency and productivity, it…

  6. Are occupational factors important determinants of socioeconomic inequalities in musculoskeletal pain?

    PubMed

    Mehlum, Ingrid Sivesind; Kristensen, Petter; Kjuus, Helge; Wergeland, Ebba

    2008-08-01

    The aim of this study was to quantify socioeconomic inequalities in low-back pain, neck-shoulder pain, and arm pain in the general working population in Oslo and to examine the impact of job characteristics on these inequalities. All economically active 30-, 40-, and 45-year-old persons who attended the Oslo health study in 2000-2001 and answered questions on physical job demands, job autonomy, and musculoskeletal pain were included (N=7293). Occupational class was used as an indicator of socioeconomic status. The lower occupational classes were compared with higher grade professionals, and prevalences, prevalence ratios, prevalence differences, and population attributable fractions were calculated. There were marked, stepwise socioeconomic gradients for musculoskeletal pain, steeper for the men than for the women. The relative differences (prevalence ratios) were larger for low-back pain and arm pain than for neck-shoulder pain. The absolute differences (prevalence differences) were the largest for low-back pain. Physical job demands explained a substantial proportion of the absolute occupational class inequalities in low-back pain, while job autonomy was more important in explaining the inequalities in neck-shoulder pain and arm pain. The estimated population attributable fractions supported the impact of job characteristics at the working population level, especially for low-back pain. In this cross-sectional study, physical job demands and job autonomy explained a substantial proportion of occupational class inequalities in self-reported musculoskeletal pain in the working population in Oslo. This finding indicates that the workplace may be an important arena for preventive efforts to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in musculoskeletal pain.

  7. Between- and Within-Occupation Inequality: The Case of High-Status Professions*

    PubMed Central

    Xie, Yu; Killewald, Alexandra; Near, Christopher

    2015-01-01

    In this chapter, we present analyses of the roles of education and occupation in shaping trends in income inequality among college-educated workers in the U.S., drawing data from two sources: (1) the 1960–2000 U.S. Censuses and (2) the 2006–2008 three-year American Community Survey. We also examine in detail historical trends in between-occupation and within-occupation income inequality for a small set of high-status professionals, with focused attention on the economic wellbeing of scientists. Our research yields four findings. First, education premiums have increased. Second, both between-occupation and within-occupation inequality increased at about the same rates for college graduates, so that the portion of inequality attributable to occupational differences remained constant. Third, scientists have lost ground relative to other similarly educated professionals. Fourth, trends in within-occupation inequality vary by occupation and education, making any sweeping summary on the roles of education and occupation in the overall increase in income inequality difficult. PMID:26977113

  8. Inequalities in the Educational Experiences of Black and White Americans, Background Paper.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chadima, Steven; Wabnick, Richard

    There are inequalities in the educational experiences of blacks and whites. Black students tend to have lower grade point averages than do white students. Also, they are suspended more often and for longer spells than whites. Fewer blacks remain in secondary school beyond the compulsory attendance age, fewer graduate from high school, and fewer…

  9. The Intersectionality of Educational Inequalities and Child Poverty in Africa: A Deconstruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tshabangu, Icarbord

    2018-01-01

    The developing world has continually faced tremendous challenges in providing social security and safety nets for its vast populations culminating in wider educational inequalities and extreme poverty. It is not uncommon in Sub-Saharan Africa to find rapacious wealth in the hands of a few co-existing with mass poverty. As a consequence, the…

  10. Beyond lognormal inequality: The Lorenz Flow Structure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eliazar, Iddo

    2016-11-01

    Observed from a socioeconomic perspective, the intrinsic inequality of the lognormal law happens to manifest a flow generated by an underlying ordinary differential equation. In this paper we extend this feature of the lognormal law to a general ;Lorenz Flow Structure; of Lorenz curves-objects that quantify socioeconomic inequality. The Lorenz Flow Structure establishes a general framework of size distributions that span continuous spectra of socioeconomic states ranging from the pure-communism extreme to the absolute-monarchy extreme. This study introduces and explores the Lorenz Flow Structure, analyzes its statistical properties and its inequality properties, unveils the unique role of the lognormal law within this general structure, and presents various examples of this general structure. Beyond the lognormal law, the examples include the inverse-Pareto and Pareto laws-which often govern the tails of composite size distributions.

  11. There's a New -gogy in Town: Say Goodbye to Educational Inequality and Injustice with Senegogy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ginley, Kristine

    2016-01-01

    For the "Baby Boomer" generation, there exists inequality and injustice in education, both in dollars spent on education/programs and in amount of study devoted to their learning needs. "When the first baby boomers turned 65 in 2011, there were just under 77 million baby boomers in the population" (Colby & Ortman, 2014).…

  12. Regional inequalities in self-rated health and disability in younger and older generations in Turkey: the contribution of wealth and education.

    PubMed

    Ergin, Isil; Kunst, Anton E

    2015-09-29

    In Turkey, large regional inequalities were found in maternal and child health. Yet, evidence on regional inequalities in adult health in Turkey remains fragmentary. This study aims to assess regional and rural/urban inequalities in the prevalence of poor self-rated health and in disability among adult populations in Turkey, and to measure the contribution of education and wealth of individual residents. The central hypothesis was that geographical inequalities in adult health exist even when the effect of education and wealth were taken into account. We analyzed data of the 2002 World Health Survey for Turkey on 10791 adults aged 20 years and over. We measured respondents' rating of their own general health and the prevalence of five types of physical disability. Logistic regression was used to estimate how much these two health outcomes varied according to urban/rural place of residence, region, education level and household wealth. We stratified the analyses by gender and age (‹50 and ≥50 years). Both health outcomes were strongly associated with educational level (especially for older age group) and with household wealth (especially for younger age group). Both health outcomes also varied according to region and rural/urban place of residence. Higher prevalence rates were observed in the East region (compared to West) with odd ratios varying between 1.40-2.76. After controlling for education and wealth, urban/rural differences in health disappeared, while regional differences were observed only among older women. The prevalence of poor self-rated health was higher for older women in the Middle (OR = 1.69), Black Sea (OR = 1.53) and East (OR = 2.06) regions. In Turkey, substantial geographical inequalities in self-reported adult health do exist, but can mostly be explained by differences in socioeconomic characteristics of residents. The regional disadvantage of older women in the East, Middle and Black Sea may have resulted from life

  13. Mother's education and the risk of preterm and small for gestational age birth: a DRIVERS meta-analysis of 12 European cohorts.

    PubMed

    Ruiz, Milagros; Goldblatt, Peter; Morrison, Joana; Kukla, Lubomír; Švancara, Jan; Riitta-Järvelin, Marjo; Taanila, Anja; Saurel-Cubizolles, Marie-Josèphe; Lioret, Sandrine; Bakoula, Chryssa; Veltsista, Alexandra; Porta, Daniela; Forastiere, Francesco; van Eijsden, Manon; Vrijkotte, Tanja G M; Eggesbø, Merete; White, Richard A; Barros, Henrique; Correia, Sofia; Vrijheid, Martine; Torrent, Maties; Rebagliato, Marisa; Larrañaga, Isabel; Ludvigsson, Johnny; Olsen Faresjö, Åshild; Hryhorczuk, Daniel; Antipkin, Youriy; Marmot, Michael; Pikhart, Hynek

    2015-09-01

    A healthy start to life is a major priority in efforts to reduce health inequalities across Europe, with important implications for the health of future generations. There is limited combined evidence on inequalities in health among newborns across a range of European countries. Prospective cohort data of 75 296 newborns from 12 European countries were used. Maternal education, preterm and small for gestational age births were determined at baseline along with covariate data. Regression models were estimated within each cohort and meta-analyses were conducted to compare and measure heterogeneity between cohorts. Mother's education was linked to an appreciable risk of preterm and small for gestational age (SGA) births across 12 European countries. The excess risk of preterm births associated with low maternal education was 1.48 (1.29 to 1.69) and 1.84 (0.99 to 2.69) in relative and absolute terms (Relative/Slope Index of Inequality, RII/SII) for all cohorts combined. Similar effects were found for SGA births, but absolute inequalities were greater, with an SII score of 3.64 (1.74 to 5.54). Inequalities at birth were strong in the Netherlands, the UK, Sweden and Spain and marginal in other countries studied. This study highlights the value of comparative cohort analysis to better understand the relationship between maternal education and markers of fetal growth in different settings across Europe. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  14. Educational content related to postcolonialism and indigenous health inequities recommended for all rehabilitation students in Canada: a qualitative study.

    PubMed

    Hojjati, Ala; Beavis, Allana S W; Kassam, Aly; Choudhury, Daniel; Fraser, Michelle; Masching, Renée; Nixon, Stephanie A

    2017-10-02

    Postcolonial analysis can help rehabilitation providers understand how colonization and racialization create and sustain health inequities faced by indigenous peoples. However, there is little guidance in the literature regarding inclusion of postcolonialism within rehabilitation educational curricula. Therefore, this study explored perspectives regarding educational content related to postcolonialism and indigenous health that rehabilitation students in Canada should learn to increase health equity. This qualitative study involved in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 19 individuals with insight into postcolonialism and health in Canada. Data were analyzed collaboratively to identify, code, and translate themes according to a structured six-phase method. Four themes emerged regarding educational content for rehabilitation students: (1) the historic trauma of colonization and its ongoing impacts on rehabilitation for indigenous peoples; (2) disproportionate health burden and inequitable access to health services; (3) how rehabilitation is related to Indigenous ways of knowing; and (4) why rehabilitation is well-positioned to address health inequities with Indigenous Peoples. Results call for reflection on assumptions underpinning the rehabilitation professions that may unintentionally reinforce health inequities. A postcolonial lens can help rehabilitation educators promote culturally safe services for people whose ill health and disability are linked to the effects of colonization. Implications for Rehabilitation Given the powerful, ongoing effects of colonization and racialization on health and disability, recommendation #24 from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada calls for the education of health professionals related to Indigenous history, rights, and anti-racism. However, there is little curricula on these areas in the education of rehabilitation professional students or in continuing education programs for practicing clinicians. This is the

  15. Socioeconomic inequalities in suicidal ideation, parasuicides, and completed suicides in South Korea.

    PubMed

    Kim, Myoung-Hee; Jung-Choi, Kyunghee; Jun, Hee-Jin; Kawachi, Ichiro

    2010-04-01

    As a result of unprecedented increase in suicides over the last decade, Korea now ranks at the top of OECD countries in suicide statistics (26.1 deaths per 100,000 population in 2005). Our study sought to document socioeconomic inequalities in self-destructive behaviors including suicidal ideation, parasuicide, and completed suicide. For prevalence of suicidal ideation and parasuicide, we used four waves of data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1995, 1998, 2001, and 2005). For suicide mortality, we abstracted suicide cases from the National Death Registration records, and linked them with population denominators from the national census in 1995, 2000, and 2005. We examined variation in self-destructive behaviors according to level of educational attainment (at the individual level), as well as area-level characteristics including level of deprivation and degree of urbanicity. Age-standardized rates were calculated through direct standardization using the 2005 census population as the standard. Inequalities were measured by the relative index of inequality and the slope index of inequality. The age-standardized prevalence of suicidal ideation decreased across consecutive surveys in both genders (18.0-13.5% for men, 27.5-22.9% for women). Parasuicides similarly decreased over time. By contrast, completed suicides increased over time (20.9-42.8 per 100,000 for men and 8.9-20.9 for women). The most prominent increases in completed suicides were observed among the elderly in both genders. Lower education, rural residence, and area deprivation was each associated with higher suicide rates. Both absolute as well as relative inequalities in suicide by socioeconomic position widened over time. Our findings suggest that the current suicide epidemic in Korea has social origins. In addition to clinical approaches targeted to the prevention of suicides in high risk individuals, social policies are needed to protect disadvantaged populations at

  16. The Operation of Grade Retention and Educational Inequality: Who Gets Retained in Macao and Why?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wong, Yi-Lee; Zhou, Yisu

    2017-01-01

    While the existence of a class, gender, or ethnic gap in educational attainment is well documented for many societies, how the practice of grade retention contributes to these patterns of educational inequality has been inadequately addressed. Given that grade retention is commonly practised in Macao, Macao is used as a case for illustration.…

  17. The Postgraduate Premium: Revisiting Trends in Social Mobility and Educational Inequalities in Britain and America

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lindley, Joanne; Machin, Stephen

    2013-01-01

    This report revisits the debate about why social mobility levels are relatively low in Great Britain and the United States of America compared to other countries. It focuses on three main areas within this debate: (1) the changing role of educational inequalities; (2) the expectation of ever higher levels of education as revealed in increasing…

  18. Income-, education- and gender-related inequalities in out-of-pocket health-care payments for 65+ patients - a systematic review

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background In all OECD countries, there is a trend to increasing patients' copayments in order to balance rising overall health-care costs. This systematic review focuses on inequalities concerning the amount of out-of-pocket payments (OOPP) associated with income, education or gender in the Elderly aged 65+. Methods Based on an online search (PubMed), 29 studies providing information on OOPP of 65+ beneficiaries in relation to income, education and gender were reviewed. Results Low-income individuals pay the highest OOPP in relation to their earnings. Prescription drugs account for the biggest share. A lower educational level is associated with higher OOPP for prescription drugs and a higher probability of insufficient insurance protection. Generally, women face higher OOPP due to their lower income and lower labour participation rate, as well as less employer-sponsored health-care. Conclusions While most studies found educational and gender inequalities to be associated with income, there might also be effects induced solely by education; for example, an unhealthy lifestyle leading to higher payments for lower-educated people, or exclusively gender-induced effects, like sex-specific illnesses. Based on the considered studies, an explanation for inequalities in OOPP by these factors remains ambiguous. PMID:20701794

  19. Reducing health inequalities with interventions targeting behavioral factors among individuals with low levels of education - A rapid review.

    PubMed

    Vilhelmsson, Andreas; Östergren, Per-Olof

    2018-01-01

    Individuals with low levels of education systematically have worse health than those with medium or high levels of education. Yet there are few examples of attempts to summarize the evidence supporting the efficacy of interventions targeting health-related behavior among individuals with low education levels, and a large part of the literature is descriptive rather than analytical. A rapid review was carried out to examine the impact of such interventions. Special attention was given to the relative impact of the interventions among individuals with low education levels and their potential to reduce health inequality. Of 1,365 articles initially identified, only 31 were deemed relevant for the review, and of those, nine met the inclusion and quality criteria. The comparability of included studies was limited due to differences in study design, sample characteristics, and definitions of exposure and outcome variables. Therefore, instead of performing a formal meta-analysis, an overall assessment of the available evidence was made and summarized into some general conclusions. We found no support for the notion that the methods used to reduce smoking decrease inequalities in health between educational groups. Evidence was also limited for decreasing inequality through interventions regarding dietary intake, physical activity and mental health. Only one study was found using an intervention designed to decrease socioeconomic inequalities by increasing the use of breast cancer screening. Thus, we concluded that there is a lack of support regarding this type of intervention as well. Therefore, the main conclusion is that solid evidence is lacking for interventions aimed at individual determinants of health and that more research is needed to fill this gap in knowledge.

  20. Inequality and Doctoral Education: Exploring the "Rules" of Doctoral Study through Bourdieu's Notion of Field

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gopaul, Bryan

    2015-01-01

    While studies have examined a myriad of issues in doctoral study, much of this research has not employed the tools of major social and cultural thinkers to the dynamics of doctoral education. This paper explores the use of Bourdieu's notion of field to render visible the practices and contexts of doctoral education that produce inequalities across…

  1. Gender Inequality and Disabled Inclusivity in Accounting Higher Education and the Accounting Profession during Financial Crises

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lodh, Suman; Nandy, Monomita

    2017-01-01

    In this article, the authors find that, during financial crises, the wage gap between female and male accounting professionals declines and gender inequality in higher education is affected. In addition, less support and lower wages for disabled accounting professionals demotivate disabled students in accounting higher education. Because of budget…

  2. Education-based health inequalities in 18,000 Norwegian couples: the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT).

    PubMed

    Nilsen, Sara Marie; Bjørngaard, Johan Håkon; Ernstsen, Linda; Krokstad, Steinar; Westin, Steinar

    2012-11-19

    Education-based inequalities in health are well established, but they are usually studied from an individual perspective. However, many individuals are part of a couple. We studied education-based health inequalities from the perspective of couples where indicators of health were measured by subjective health, anxiety and depression. A sample of 35,980 women and men (17,990 couples) was derived from the Norwegian Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 1995-97 (HUNT 2). Educational data and family identification numbers were obtained from Statistics Norway. The dependent variables were subjective health (four-integer scale), anxiety (21-integer scale) and depression (21-integer scale), which were captured using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The dependent variables were rescaled from 0 to 100 where 100 was the worst score. Cross-sectional analyses were performed using two-level linear random effect regression models. The variance attributable to the couple level was 42% for education, 16% for subjective health, 19% for anxiety and 25% for depression. A one-year increase in education relative to that of one's partner was associated with an improvement of 0.6 scale points (95% confidence interval = 0.5-0.8) in the subjective health score (within-couple coefficient). A one-year increase in a couple's average education was associated with an improvement of 1.7 scale points (95% confidence interval = 1.6-1.8) in the subjective health score (between-couple coefficient). There were no education-based differences in the anxiety or depression scores when partners were compared, whereas there were substantial education-based differences between couples in all three outcome measures. We found considerable clustering of education and health within couples, which highlighted the importance of the family environment. Our results support previous studies that report the mutual effects of spouses on education-based inequalities in health, suggesting that couples develop

  3. Widening socioeconomic inequalities in mortality in six Western European countries.

    PubMed

    Mackenbach, Johan P; Bos, Vivian; Andersen, Otto; Cardano, Mario; Costa, Giuseppe; Harding, Seeromanie; Reid, Alison; Hemström, Orjan; Valkonen, Tapani; Kunst, Anton E

    2003-10-01

    During the past decades a widening of the relative gap in death rates between upper and lower socioeconomic groups has been reported for several European countries. Although differential mortality decline for cardiovascular diseases has been suggested as an important contributory factor, it is not known what its quantitative contribution was, and to what extent other causes of death have contributed to the widening gap in total mortality. We collected data on mortality by educational level and occupational class among men and women from national longitudinal studies in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, England/Wales, and Italy (Turin), and analysed age-standardized death rates in two recent time periods (1981-1985 and 1991-1995), both total mortality and by cause of death. For simplicity, we report on inequalities in mortality between two broad socioeconomic groups (high and low educational level, non-manual and manual occupations). Relative inequalities in total mortality have increased in all six countries, but absolute differences in total mortality were fairly stable, with the exception of Finland where an increase occurred. In most countries, mortality from cardiovascular diseases declined proportionally faster in the upper socioeconomic groups. The exception is Italy (Turin) where the reverse occurred. In all countries with the exception of Italy (Turin), changes in cardiovascular disease mortality contributed about half of the widening relative gap for total mortality. Other causes also made important contributions to the widening gap in total mortality. For these causes, widening inequalities were sometimes due to increasing mortality rates in the lower socioeconomic groups. We found rising rates of mortality from lung cancer, breast cancer, respiratory disease, gastrointestinal disease, and injuries among men and/or women in lower socioeconomic groups in several countries. Reducing socioeconomic inequalities in mortality in Western Europe critically

  4. Education level and inequalities in stroke reperfusion therapy: observations in the Swedish stroke register.

    PubMed

    Stecksén, Anna; Glader, Eva-Lotta; Asplund, Kjell; Norrving, Bo; Eriksson, Marie

    2014-09-01

    Previous studies have revealed inequalities in stroke treatment based on demographics, hospital type, and region. We used the Swedish Stroke Register (Riksstroke) to test whether patient education level is associated with reperfusion (either or both of thrombolysis and thrombectomy) treatment. We included 85 885 patients with ischemic stroke aged 18 to 80 years registered in Riksstroke between 2003 and 2009. Education level was retrieved from Statistics Sweden, and thrombolysis, thrombectomy, patient, and hospital data were obtained from Riksstroke. We used multivariable logistic regression to analyze the association between reperfusion therapy and patient education. A total of 3649 (4.2%) of the patients received reperfusion therapy. University-educated patients were more likely to be treated (5.5%) than patients with secondary (4.6%) or primary education (3.6%; P<0.001). The inequality associated with education was still present after adjustment for patient characteristics; university education odds ratio, 1.14; 95% confidence interval, 1.03 to 1.26 and secondary education odds ratio, 1.08; 95% confidence interval, 1.00 to 1.17 compared with primary education. Higher hospital specialization level was also associated with higher reperfusion levels (P<0.001). In stratified multivariable analyses by hospital type, significant treatment differences by education level existed only among large nonuniversity hospitals (university education odds ratio, 1.20; 95% confidence interval, 1.04-1.40; secondary education odds ratio, 1.14; 95% confidence interval, 1.01-1.29). We demonstrated a social stratification in reperfusion, partly explained by patient characteristics and the local hospital specialization level. Further studies should address treatment delays, stroke knowledge, and means to improve reperfusion implementation in less specialized hospitals. © 2014 American Heart Association, Inc.

  5. Curriculum Differentiation and Social Inequality in Higher Education Entry in Scotland and Ireland

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Iannelli, Cristina; Smyth, Emer; Klein, Markus

    2016-01-01

    This paper examines the relative importance of upper secondary subject choice and attainment in explaining social inequalities in access to higher education (HE) in Scotland and Ireland. These two countries differ in the extent of curriculum differentiation, in the degree of standardisation in school examination and in HE entry criteria. In…

  6. Standardization of Lower Secondary Civic Education and Inequality of the Civic and Political Engagement of Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Witschge, Jacqueline; van de Werfhorst, Herman G.

    2016-01-01

    In this paper, the relation between the standardization of civic education and the inequality of civic engagement is examined. Using data from the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study 2009 among early adolescents and Eurydice country-level data, three-level analysis and variance function regression are applied to examine whether…

  7. Income Inequality and Happiness: An Inverted U-Shaped Curve.

    PubMed

    Yu, Zonghuo; Wang, Fei

    2017-01-01

    Numerous studies agree that income inequality, rather than absolute income, is an important predictor of happiness. However, its specific role has been controversial. We argue that income inequality and happiness should exhibit an inverted U-shaped relationship due to the dynamic competing process between two effects: when income inequality is relatively low, the signal effect will be the dominating factor, in which individuals feel happy because they consider income inequality as a signal of social mobility and expect upward mobility; however, if income inequality level increases beyond a critical point, the jealousy effect will become the dominating factor, in which individuals tend to be unhappy because they are disillusioned about the prospect of upward mobility and jealous of their wealthier peers. This hypothesis is tested in a longitudinal dataset on the United States and a cross-national dataset on several European countries. In both datasets, the Gini coefficient (a common index of a society's income inequality) and its quadratic term were significant predictors of personal happiness. Further examinations of the quadratic relationships showed that the signal effect was only presented in the European data, while the jealousy effect was presented in both datasets. These findings shed new light on our understanding of the relationship between income inequality and personal happiness.

  8. Income Inequality and Happiness: An Inverted U-Shaped Curve

    PubMed Central

    Yu, Zonghuo; Wang, Fei

    2017-01-01

    Numerous studies agree that income inequality, rather than absolute income, is an important predictor of happiness. However, its specific role has been controversial. We argue that income inequality and happiness should exhibit an inverted U-shaped relationship due to the dynamic competing process between two effects: when income inequality is relatively low, the signal effect will be the dominating factor, in which individuals feel happy because they consider income inequality as a signal of social mobility and expect upward mobility; however, if income inequality level increases beyond a critical point, the jealousy effect will become the dominating factor, in which individuals tend to be unhappy because they are disillusioned about the prospect of upward mobility and jealous of their wealthier peers. This hypothesis is tested in a longitudinal dataset on the United States and a cross-national dataset on several European countries. In both datasets, the Gini coefficient (a common index of a society’s income inequality) and its quadratic term were significant predictors of personal happiness. Further examinations of the quadratic relationships showed that the signal effect was only presented in the European data, while the jealousy effect was presented in both datasets. These findings shed new light on our understanding of the relationship between income inequality and personal happiness. PMID:29225588

  9. Socio-economic inequalities in Norwegian health care utilization over 3 decades: the HUNT Study.

    PubMed

    Vikum, Eirik; Bjørngaard, Johan Håkon; Westin, Steinar; Krokstad, Steinar

    2013-12-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate socio-economic inequalities in health care utilization from the 1980s and through the last 3 decades in a Norwegian county population. Altogether, 166 758 observations of 97 251 individuals during surveys in 1984-86 (83% eligible responses), 1995-97 (51% eligible responses) and 2006-08 (50% eligible responses) of the total population of adults (≥ 20 years) from Nord-Trøndelag county in Norway were included. Health care utilization was measured as at least one visit to general practitioner (GP), hospital outpatient services and inpatient care in the past year. Socio-economy was measured by both education and income and rescaled to measure relative indexes of inequality (RII). Relative and absolute inequalities were estimated from multilevel logistic regression. Estimates were adjusted for age, sex, municipality size and self-reported health. GP utilization was higher among individuals with higher education in 1984-86. Among men the RII was 0.54 (CI: 0.48-0.62), and among women RII was 0.67 (CI: 0.58-0.77). In 2006-08, the corresponding RII was 1.31 (CI: 1.13-1.52) for men and 1.00 (CI: 0.85-1.18) for women, indicating higher or equal GP utilization among those with lower education, respectively. The corresponding RIIs for outpatient consultations were 0.58 (CI: 0.49-0.68) for men and 0.40 (CI: 0.34-0.46) for women in 1984-86, and 0.53 (CI: 0.46-0.62) for men and 0.47 (CI: 0.41-0.53) for women in 2006-08. Through the last 3 decades, the previous socio-economic differences in GP utilization have diminished. Despite this, highly educated people were more prone to utilize hospital outpatient consultations throughout the period 1984-2008.

  10. The role of self-control and cognitive functioning in educational inequalities in adolescent smoking and binge drinking.

    PubMed

    Davies, Lisa E M; Kuipers, Mirte A G; Junger, Marianne; Kunst, Anton E

    2017-09-16

    Large differences in substance use between educational levels originate at a young age, but there is limited evidence explaining these inequalities. The aim of this study was to test whether a) smoking and binge drinking are associated with lower levels of self-control and cognitive functioning, and b) associations between educational track and smoking and binge drinking, respectively, are attenuated after controlling for self-control and cognitive functioning. This study used cross-sectional survey data of 15 to 20-year-olds (N = 191) from low, middle, and high educational tracks. We measured regular binge drinking and regular smoking (more than once a month), cognitive functioning (cognitive ability, reaction time and memory span), and self-control. Logistic regression models were used to assess the associations between educational track and smoking and binge drinking controlled for age, gender and social disadvantage, and for self-control and cognitive functioning. According to models that controlled for age, gender and social disadvantage only, respondents in the low educational track were more likely to drink heavily (OR = 3.25, 95% CI = 1.48-7.17) and smoke (OR = 5.74, 95% CI = 2.31-14.29) than adolescents in the high educational track. The association between educational track and binge drinking was hardly reduced after adjustment for self-control and cognitive ability (OR = 2.88, 95% CI = 1.09-7.62). Adjustment for self-control and cognitive functioning, especially cognitive ability, weakened the association between education and smoking (OR = 3.40, 95% CI = 1.11-10.37). However, inequalities in smoking remained significant and substantial. In this study population, pre-existing variations between adolescents in terms of self-control and cognitive functioning played a minor role in educational inequalities in smoking, but not in binge drinking.

  11. Social inequalities in "sickness": does welfare state regime type make a difference? A multilevel analysis of men and women in 26 European countries.

    PubMed

    van der Wel, Kjetil A; Dahl, Espen; Thielen, Karsten

    2012-01-01

    In comparative studies of health inequalities, public health researchers have usually studied only disease and illness. Recent studies have also examined the sickness dimension of health, that is, the extent to which ill health is accompanied by joblessness, and how this association varies by education within different welfare contexts. This research has used either a limited number of countries or quantitative welfare state measures in studies of many countries. In this study, the authors expand on this knowledge by investigating whether a regime approach to the welfare state produces consistent results. They analyze data from the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC); health was measured by limiting longstanding illness (LLSI). Results show that for both men and women reporting LLSI in combination with low educational level, the probabilities of non-employment were particularly high in the Anglo-Saxon and Eastern welfare regimes, and lowest in the Scandinavian regime. For men, absolute and relative social inequalities in sickness were lowest in the Southern regime; for women, inequalities were lowest in the Scandinavian regime. The authors conclude that the Scandinavian welfare regime is more able than other regimes to protect against non-employment in the face of illness, especially for individuals with low educational level.

  12. Gender, professional and non-professional work, and the changing pattern of employment-related inequality in poor self-rated health, 1995-2006 in South Korea.

    PubMed

    Kim, Il Ho; Khang, Young Ho; Cho, Sung Il; Chun, Heeran; Muntaner, Carles

    2011-01-01

    We examined gender differential changes in employment-related health inequalities according to occupational position (professional/nonprofessional) in South Korea during the last decade. Data were taken from four rounds of Social Statistical Surveys of South Korea (1995, 1999, 2003, and 2006) from the Korean National Statistics Office. The total study population was 55435 male and 33 913 female employees aged 25-64. Employment arrangements were divided into permanent, fixed-term, and daily employment. After stratification according to occupational position (professional/nonprofessional) and gender, different patterns in employment - related health inequalities were observed. In the professional group, the gaps in absolute and relative employment inequalities for poor self-rated health were more likely to widen following Korea's 1997 economic downturn. In the nonprofessional group, during the study period, graded patterns of employment-related health inequalities were continuously observed in both genders. Absolute health inequalities by employment status, however, decreased among men but increased among women. In addition, a remarkable increase in relative health inequalities was found among female temporary and daily employees (p = 0.009, < 0.001, respectively), but only among male daily employees (p = 0.001). Relative employment-related health inequalities had clearly widened for female daily workers between 2003 and 2006 (p = 0.047). The 1997 Korean economic downturn, in particular, seemingly stimulated a widening gap in employment health inequalities. Our study revealed that whereas absolute health inequalities in relation to employment status increased in the professional group, relative employment-related health inequalities increased in the nonprofessional group, especially among women. In view of the high concentration of female nonstandard employees, further monitoring of inequality should consider gender specific patterns according to employee

  13. Measuring the global information society - explaining digital inequality by economic level and education standard

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ünver, H.

    2017-02-01

    A main focus of this research paper is to investigate on the explanation of the ‘digital inequality’ or ‘digital divide’ by economic level and education standard of about 150 countries worldwide. Inequality regarding GDP per capita, literacy and the so-called UN Education Index seem to be important factors affecting ICT usage, in particular Internet penetration, mobile phone usage and also mobile Internet services. Empirical methods and (multivariate) regression analysis with linear and non-linear functions are useful methods to measure some crucial factors of a country or culture towards becoming information and knowledge based society. Overall, the study concludes that the convergence regarding ICT usage proceeds worldwide faster than the convergence in terms of economic wealth and education in general. The results based on a large data analysis show that the digital divide is declining over more than a decade between 2000 and 2013, since more people worldwide use mobile phones and the Internet. But a high digital inequality explained to a significant extent by the functional relation between technology penetration rates, education level and average income still exists. Furthermore it supports the actions of countries at UN/G20/OECD level for providing ICT access to all people for a more balanced world in context of sustainable development by postulating that policymakers need to promote comprehensive education worldwide by means of using ICT.

  14. [Mental income inequality: a "virus" which affects health and happiness].

    PubMed

    Bouffard, Léandre; Dubé, Micheline

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the impact of income inequality on various indexes of mental health and on happiness in wealthy nations. Initially, the unequal distribution of income is documented in wealthy nations, especially in the United States of America. After the World War II, income equality was at a level never reached before, but since the eighties, income inequality has raised dramatically in many industrialized countries. The 2008 crisis has worsened the situation in many of them, particularly in the United States. Furthermore, prejudices have increased against women, Blacks, Spanish-speakers and those who receive social welfare. A selective review of the literature is made in order to document the impact of income inequality on a few indicators of mental health (from WHO, UN, UNICEF, OCDE and World Bank) and on happiness, defined here as life satisfaction. Income inequality is positively related to the following indexes: Index of Mental Illness from the WHO (0.73), Index of the United Nations' Office on Drug Consumption (0.63) and a composite Index of ten psychosocial problems, constituted by Wilkinson and Pickett, 2013 (0.87). On the other hand, income inequality is negatively associated to the UNICEF Index of Child Well-Being (-0.71). Furthermore, the level of anxiety and of depression is higher in countries where income inequality is greater. The correlation between happiness and income inequality in the 23 wealthy nations is -0.48; this correlation becomes -0.41 after control of the effect of the GNP (Gross National Product). These results support the idea that it is relative income - not absolute income - which matters in the evaluation of our life and of our happiness. In underdeveloped nations, any increase in GNP promotes the well-being of the citizens; whereas in wealthy nations, it is the equality of the distribution that is more important. Many arguments supporting the causal relation from income inequality to psychosocial

  15. Within country inequalities in caesarean section rates: observational study of 72 low and middle income countries

    PubMed Central

    Boatin, Adeline Adwoa; Schlotheuber, Anne; Betran, Ana Pilar; Moller, Ann-Beth; Barros, Aluisio J D; Boerma, Ties; Torloni, Maria Regina; Victora, Cesar G

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Objective To provide an update on economic related inequalities in caesarean section rates within countries. Design Secondary analysis of demographic and health surveys and multiple indicator cluster surveys. Setting 72 low and middle income countries with a survey conducted between 2010 and 2014 for analysis of the latest situation of inequality, and 28 countries with a survey also conducted between 2000 and 2004 for analysis of the change in inequality over time. Participants Women aged 15-49 years with a live birth during the two or three years preceding the survey. Main outcome measures Data on caesarean section were disaggregated by asset based household wealth status and presented separately for five subgroups, ranging from the poorest to the richest fifth. Absolute and relative inequalities were measured using difference and ratio measures. The pace of change in the poorest and richest fifths was compared using a measure of excess change. Results National caesarean section rates ranged from 0.6% in South Sudan to 58.9% in the Dominican Republic. Within countries, caesarean section rates were lowest in the poorest fifth (median 3.7%) and highest in the richest fifth (median 18.4%). 18 out of 72 study countries reported a difference of 20 percentage points or higher between the richest and poorest fifth. The highest caesarean section rates and greatest levels of absolute inequality were observed in countries from the region of the Americas, whereas countries from the African region had low levels of caesarean use and comparatively lower levels of absolute inequality, although relative inequality was quite high in some countries. 26 out of 28 countries reported increases in caesarean section rates over time. Rates tended to increase faster in the richest fifth (median 0.9 percentage points per year) compared with the poorest fifth (median 0.2 percentage points per year), indicating an increase in inequality over time in most of these countries

  16. On Effective Graphic Communication of Health Inequality: Considerations for Health Policy Researchers.

    PubMed

    Asada, Yukiko; Abel, Hannah; Skedgel, Chris; Warner, Grace

    2017-12-01

    Policy Points: Effective graphs can be a powerful tool in communicating health inequality. The choice of graphs is often based on preferences and familiarity rather than science. According to the literature on graph perception, effective graphs allow human brains to decode visual cues easily. Dot charts are easier to decode than bar charts, and thus they are more effective. Dot charts are a flexible and versatile way to display information about health inequality. Consistent with the health risk communication literature, the captions accompanying health inequality graphs should provide a numerical, explicitly calculated description of health inequality, expressed in absolute and relative terms, from carefully thought-out perspectives. Graphs are an essential tool for communicating health inequality, a key health policy concern. The choice of graphs is often driven by personal preferences and familiarity. Our article is aimed at health policy researchers developing health inequality graphs for policy and scientific audiences and seeks to (1) raise awareness of the effective use of graphs in communicating health inequality; (2) advocate for a particular type of graph (ie, dot charts) to depict health inequality; and (3) suggest key considerations for the captions accompanying health inequality graphs. Using composite review methods, we selected the prevailing recommendations for improving graphs in scientific reporting. To find the origins of these recommendations, we reviewed the literature on graph perception and then applied what we learned to the context of health inequality. In addition, drawing from the numeracy literature in health risk communication, we examined numeric and verbal formats to explain health inequality graphs. Many disciplines offer commonsense recommendations for visually presenting quantitative data. The literature on graph perception, which defines effective graphs as those allowing the easy decoding of visual cues in human brains, shows

  17. Urban versus Suburban Public Schools: Resolving the Issue of Racial Inequality in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Batts, Pamela L.

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to address a possible solution to the racial inequality in urban versus suburban public schools. It also addresses the stereotyping and racial bias associated with this issue. Students enrolled in the urban school districts are predominantly African American and are found to be at an educational disadvantage compared…

  18. Dynamics of Inequalities in Access to Higher Education: Bulgaria in a Comparative Perspective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ilieva-Trichkova, Petya; Boyadjieva, Pepka

    2014-01-01

    This paper aims at studying the dynamics of inequalities in access to higher education (HE) both in a historical and a comparative perspective. It uses Bulgaria as a case study and places it among five other countries such as Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. The adopted approach differentiates between equity in HE and inequalities…

  19. Individual-level socioeconomic status and community-level inequality as determinants of stigma towards persons living with HIV who inject drugs in Thai Nguyen, Vietnam.

    PubMed

    Lim, Travis; Zelaya, Carla; Latkin, Carl; Quan, Vu Minh; Frangakis, Constantine; Ha, Tran Viet; Minh, Nguyen Le; Go, Vivian

    2013-11-13

    HIV infection may be affected by multiple complex socioeconomic status (SES) factors, especially individual socioeconomic disadvantage and community-level inequality. At the same time, stigma towards HIV and marginalized groups has exacerbated persistent concentrated epidemics among key populations, such as persons who inject drugs (PWID) in Vietnam. Stigma researchers argue that stigma fundamentally depends on the existence of economic power differences in a community. In rapidly growing economies like Vietnam, the increasing gap in income and education levels, as well as an individual's absolute income and education, may create social conditions that facilitate stigma related to injecting drug use and HIV. A cross-sectional baseline survey assessing different types of stigma and key socioeconomic characteristics was administered to 1674 PWID and 1349 community members living in physical proximity throughout the 32 communes in Thai Nguyen province, Vietnam. We created four stigma scales, including HIV-related and drug-related stigma reported by both PWID and community members. We then used ecologic Spearman's correlation, ordinary least-squares regression and multi-level generalized estimating equations to examine community-level inequality associations, individual-level SES associations and multi-level SES associations with different types of stigma, respectively. There was little urban-rural difference in stigma among communes. Higher income inequality was marginally associated with drug-related stigma reported by community members (p=0.087), and higher education inequality was significantly associated with higher HIV-related stigma reported by both PWID and community members (p<0.05). For individuals, higher education was significantly associated with lower stigma (HIV and drug related) reported by both PWID and community members. Part-time employed PWID reported more experiences and perceptions of drug-related stigma, while conversely unemployed community

  20. Socioeconomic and Tobacco Mediation of Ethnic Inequalities in Mortality over Time

    PubMed Central

    Disney, George; Valeri, Linda; Atkinson, June; Teng, Andrea; Wilson, Nick; Gurrin, Lyle

    2018-01-01

    Background: Racial/ethnic inequalities in mortality may be reducible by addressing socioeconomic factors and smoking. To our knowledge, this is the first study to estimate trends over multiple decades in (1) mediation of racial/ethnic inequalities in mortality (between Māori and Europeans in New Zealand) by socioeconomic factors, (2) additional mediation through smoking, and (3) inequalities had there never been smoking. Methods: We estimated natural (1 and 2 above) and controlled mediation effects (3 above) in census-mortality cohorts for 1981–1984 (1.1 million people), 1996–1999 (1.5 million), and 2006–2011 (1.5 million) for 25- to 74-year-olds in New Zealand, using a weighting of regression predicted outcomes. Results: Socioeconomic factors explained 46% of male inequalities in all three cohorts and made an increasing contribution over time among females from 30.4% (95% confidence interval = 18.1%, 42.7%) in 1981–1984 to 41.9% (36.0%, 48.0%). Including smoking with socioeconomic factors only modestly altered the percentage mediated for males, but more substantially increased it for females, for example, 7.7% (5.5%, 10.0%) in 2006–2011. A counterfactual scenario of having eradicated tobacco in the past (but unchanged socioeconomic distribution) lowered mortality for all sex-by-ethnic groups and resulted in a 12.2% (2.9%, 20.8%) and 21.2% (11.6%, 31.0%) reduction in the absolute mortality gap between Māori and Europeans in 2006–2011, for males and females, respectively. Conclusions: Our study predicts that, in this high-income country, reducing socioeconomic disparities between ethnic groups would greatly reduce ethnic inequalities in mortality over the long run. Eradicating tobacco would notably reduce ethnic inequalities in absolute but not relative mortality. PMID:29642084

  1. Maternal education and age: inequalities in neonatal death.

    PubMed

    Fonseca, Sandra Costa; Flores, Patricia Viana Guimarães; Camargo, Kenneth Rochel; Pinheiro, Rejane Sobrino; Coeli, Claudia Medina

    2017-11-17

    Evaluate the interaction between maternal age and education level in neonatal mortality, as well as investigate the temporal evolution of neonatal mortality in each stratum formed by the combination of these two risk factors. A nonconcurrent cohort study, resulting from a probabilistic relationship between the Mortality Information System and the Live Birth Information System. To investigate the risk of neonatal death we performed a logistic regression, with an odds ratio estimate for the combined variable of maternal education and age, as well as the evaluation of additive and multiplicative interaction. The neonatal mortality rate time series, according to maternal education and age, was estimated by the Joinpoint Regression program. The neonatal mortality rate in the period was 8.09‰ and it was higher in newborns of mothers with low education levels: 12.7‰ (adolescent mothers) and 12.4‰ (mother 35 years old or older). Low level of education, without the age effect, increased the chance of neonatal death by 25% (OR = 1.25, 95%CI 1.14-1.36). The isolated effect of age on neonatal death was higher for adolescent mothers (OR = 1.39, 95%CI 1.33-1.46) than for mothers aged ≥ 35 years (OR = 1.16, 95%CI 1.09-1.23). In the time-trend analysis, no age group of women with low education levels presented a reduction in the neonatal mortality rate for the period, as opposed to women with intermediate or high levels of education, where the reduction was significant, around 4% annually. Two more vulnerable groups - adolescents with low levels of education and older women with low levels of education - were identified in relation to the risk of neonatal death and inequality in reducing the mortality rate.

  2. Maternal education and age: inequalities in neonatal death

    PubMed Central

    Fonseca, Sandra Costa; Flores, Patricia Viana Guimarães; Camargo, Kenneth Rochel; Pinheiro, Rejane Sobrino; Coeli, Claudia Medina

    2017-01-01

    ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE Evaluate the interaction between maternal age and education level in neonatal mortality, as well as investigate the temporal evolution of neonatal mortality in each stratum formed by the combination of these two risk factors. METHODS A nonconcurrent cohort study, resulting from a probabilistic relationship between the Mortality Information System and the Live Birth Information System. To investigate the risk of neonatal death we performed a logistic regression, with an odds ratio estimate for the combined variable of maternal education and age, as well as the evaluation of additive and multiplicative interaction. The neonatal mortality rate time series, according to maternal education and age, was estimated by the Joinpoint Regression program. RESULTS The neonatal mortality rate in the period was 8.09‰ and it was higher in newborns of mothers with low education levels: 12.7‰ (adolescent mothers) and 12.4‰ (mother 35 years old or older). Low level of education, without the age effect, increased the chance of neonatal death by 25% (OR = 1.25, 95%CI 1.14–1.36). The isolated effect of age on neonatal death was higher for adolescent mothers (OR = 1.39, 95%CI 1.33–1.46) than for mothers aged ≥ 35 years (OR = 1.16, 95%CI 1.09–1.23). In the time-trend analysis, no age group of women with low education levels presented a reduction in the neonatal mortality rate for the period, as opposed to women with intermediate or high levels of education, where the reduction was significant, around 4% annually. CONCLUSIONS Two more vulnerable groups – adolescents with low levels of education and older women with low levels of education – were identified in relation to the risk of neonatal death and inequality in reducing the mortality rate. PMID:29166446

  3. "Capital Cities Centrism" as the Cause of Social Inequality in the Russian System of Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Latova, N. V.; Latov, Iu. V.

    2013-01-01

    Social inequality in access to superior quality higher education in Russia is due to the unequal development of the regions of Russia. The country's two biggest cities and the areas adjacent to them account for a quarter of Russia's infrastructure that offers young people an access to a higher education. The regional colleges and universities in…

  4. De facto Privatization and Inequalities in Educational Opportunity in the Transition to Secondary School in Rural Malawi.

    PubMed

    Grant, Monica J

    2017-09-01

    There has been a recent, rapid de facto privatization of education in many African countries, as the number of private secondary schools operating in the region grew. The majority of these schools are "low-cost" private schools where tuition and fees are set as low as possible to cover operating costs and still generate profit. Proponents of low-cost private schools argue that these schools have proliferated in impoverished areas to meet unmet demand for access to education and where private schools may offer better quality than locally available public schools. Theories of inequality of educational opportunity suggest that if private schools offer better quality education, students from more advantaged families will be more likely to enroll at these institutions, potentially exacerbating educational inequality in the region. This analysis uses data from a school-based longitudinal survey, the Malawi Schooling and Adolescent Study, to examine socio-economic inequalities in the transition to secondary school and on-time enrollment in upper secondary. My findings indicate that youth from non-poor households are not only more likely to enroll in secondary school than poor youth, but they are also more likely to substitute enrollment in private schools for enrollment in second-tier government schools. Enrollment at private schools, however, does not yield schooling advantages; relative to both tiers of government secondary schooling, students who initially enrolled at private schools were the least likely to enroll on time in upper secondary school. These patterns suggest that these schooling circumstances may yield less segregation of opportunity than might otherwise be assumed.

  5. Persistent socioeconomic inequalities in cardiovascular risk factors in England over 1994-2008: A time-trend analysis of repeated cross-sectional data

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Our aims were to determine the pace of change in cardiovascular risk factors by age, gender and socioeconomic groups from 1994 to 2008, and quantify the magnitude, direction and change in absolute and relative inequalities. Methods Time trend analysis was used to measure change in absolute and relative inequalities in risk factors by gender and age (16-54, ≥ 55 years), using repeated cross-sectional data from the Health Survey for England 1994-2008. Seven risk factors were examined: smoking, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, raised cholesterol, consumption of five or more daily portions of fruit and vegetables, and physical activity. Socioeconomic group was measured using the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007. Results Between 1994 and 2008, the prevalence of smoking, high blood pressure and raised cholesterol decreased in most deprivation quintiles. However, obesity and diabetes increased. Increasing absolute inequalities were found in obesity in older men and women (p = 0.044 and p = 0.027 respectively), diabetes in young men and older women (p = 0.036 and p = 0.019 respectively), and physical activity in older women (p = 0.025). Relative inequality increased in high blood pressure in young women (p = 0.005). The prevalence of raised cholesterol showed widening absolute and relative inverse gradients from 1998 onwards in older men (p = 0.004 and p ≤ 0.001 respectively) and women (p ≤ 0.001 and p ≤ 0.001). Conclusions Favourable trends in smoking, blood pressure and cholesterol are consistent with falling coronary heart disease death rates. However, adverse trends in obesity and diabetes are likely to counteract some of these gains. Furthermore, little progress over the last 15 years has been made towards reducing inequalities. Implementation of known effective population based approaches in combination with interventions targeted at individuals/subgroups with poorer cardiovascular risk profiles are therefore recommended to reduce social

  6. Global variance in female population height: the influence of education, income, human development, life expectancy, mortality and gender inequality in 96 nations.

    PubMed

    Mark, Quentin J

    2014-01-01

    Human height is a heritable trait that is known to be influenced by environmental factors and general standard of living. Individual and population stature is correlated with health, education and economic achievement. Strong sexual selection pressures for stature have been observed in multiple diverse populations, however; there is significant global variance in gender equality and prohibitions on female mate selection. This paper explores the contribution of general standard of living and gender inequality to the variance in global female population heights. Female population heights of 96 nations were culled from previously published sources and public access databases. Factor analysis with United Nations international data on education rates, life expectancy, incomes, maternal and childhood mortality rates, ratios of gender participation in education and politics, the Human Development Index (HDI) and the Gender Inequality Index (GII) was run. Results indicate that population heights vary more closely with gender inequality than with population health, income or education.

  7. An Investigation into the Relationship between the 1997 Universal Primary Education (UPE) Policy and Regional Poverty and Educational Inequalities in Uganda (1997-2007)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ekaju, John

    2012-01-01

    Past research has addressed the disparities in educational achievement for primary year seven school leavers in Uganda but it did not take into account the multidimensional perspectives: those on poverty (as reported by the poor) and on educational inequalities between and within regions, particularly with regard to the impacts of the 1997…

  8. Bohnenblust-Hille inequalities: analytical and computational aspects.

    PubMed

    Cavalcante, Wasthenny V; Pellegrino, Daniel M

    2018-02-01

    The Bohnenblust-Hille polynomial and multilinear inequalities were proved in 1931 and the determination of exact values of their constants is still an open and challenging problem, pursued by various authors. The present paper briefly surveys recent attempts to attack/solve this problem; it also presents new results, like connections with classical results of the linear theory of absolutely summing operators, and new perspectives.

  9. Education-based health inequalities in 18,000 Norwegian couples: the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT)

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Education-based inequalities in health are well established, but they are usually studied from an individual perspective. However, many individuals are part of a couple. We studied education-based health inequalities from the perspective of couples where indicators of health were measured by subjective health, anxiety and depression. Methods A sample of 35,980 women and men (17,990 couples) was derived from the Norwegian Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 1995–97 (HUNT 2). Educational data and family identification numbers were obtained from Statistics Norway. The dependent variables were subjective health (four-integer scale), anxiety (21-integer scale) and depression (21-integer scale), which were captured using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The dependent variables were rescaled from 0 to 100 where 100 was the worst score. Cross-sectional analyses were performed using two-level linear random effect regression models. Results The variance attributable to the couple level was 42% for education, 16% for subjective health, 19% for anxiety and 25% for depression. A one-year increase in education relative to that of one’s partner was associated with an improvement of 0.6 scale points (95% confidence interval = 0.5–0.8) in the subjective health score (within-couple coefficient). A one-year increase in a couple’s average education was associated with an improvement of 1.7 scale points (95% confidence interval = 1.6–1.8) in the subjective health score (between-couple coefficient). There were no education-based differences in the anxiety or depression scores when partners were compared, whereas there were substantial education-based differences between couples in all three outcome measures. Conclusions We found considerable clustering of education and health within couples, which highlighted the importance of the family environment. Our results support previous studies that report the mutual effects of spouses on education

  10. [Educational Inequality in Physical Inactivity in Leisure Time in Spanish Adult Population: differences in Ten Years (2002-2012)].

    PubMed

    Maestre-Miquel, Clara; Regidor, Enrique; Cuthill, Fiona; Martínez, David

    2015-01-01

    Social inequality in health is an increasing phenomenon in the world. The aim was to compare in 2002 and 2012, the magnitude of inequalities in leisure-time physical inactivity by educational level in Spain, but also the trends in health perception, in physically inactive people. A cross-sectional study from the National Health Survey in Spain in 2002 (n=21,650) and 2012 (n=21,007). The population aged from 25 to 64 years. At the first stage, physical inactivity in leisure-time was the dependent variable, and educational level was the independent variable. At the second stage, self-perception of health in last 12 months was the dependent variable. Logistic regression was adjusted using other variables: age, marital status, employment status and social class of the head of the family. Prevalence of leisure time physical inactivity was in 2012, up to 53.9% (men) and 67.5% (women), in the group aged between 25-44 with primary education. It declined in all age and sex groups in 2012, compared to 2002 (down to 18.7 percentage points). More than three times inactive women in between those who have primary or less education: OR 3.27 (2.35-4.55) in 2012. Bad health perceived in women with less educational level comparing with those with higher education. It also has declined over time: OR 1.45 in 2002 to OR 1.91, in 2012 (45-64 aged group). Although the prevalence of physical inactivity has decreased, inequalities in such behavior have increased in 2012 respect 2002.

  11. The mediating role of social capital in the association between neighbourhood income inequality and body mass index.

    PubMed

    Mackenbach, Joreintje D; Lakerveld, Jeroen; van Oostveen, Yavanna; Compernolle, Sofie; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse; Bárdos, Helga; Rutter, Harry; Glonti, Ketevan; Oppert, Jean-Michel; Charreire, Helene; Brug, Johannes; Nijpels, Giel

    2017-04-01

    Neighbourhood income inequality may contribute to differences in body weight. We explored whether neighbourhood social capital mediated the association of neighbourhood income inequality with individual body mass index (BMI). A total of 4126 adult participants from 48 neighbourhoods in France, Hungary, the Netherlands and the UK provided information on their levels of income, perceptions of neighbourhood social capital and BMI. Factor analysis of the 13-item social capital scale revealed two social capital constructs: social networks and social cohesion. Neighbourhood income inequality was defined as the ratio of the amount of income earned by the top 20% and the bottom 20% in a given neighbourhood. Two single mediation analyses-using multilevel linear regression analyses-with neighbourhood social networks and neighbourhood social cohesion as possible mediators-were conducted using MacKinnon's product-of-coefficients method, adjusted for age, gender, education and absolute household income. Higher neighbourhood income inequality was associated with elevated levels of BMI and lower levels of neighbourhood social networks and neighbourhood social cohesion. High levels of neighbourhood social networks were associated with lower BMI. Results stratified by country demonstrate that social networks fully explained the association between income inequality and BMI in France and the Netherlands. Social cohesion was only a significant mediating variable for Dutch participants. The results suggest that in some European urban regions, neighbourhood social capital plays a large role in the association between neighbourhood income inequality and individual BMI. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  12. Geographic health inequalities in Norway: a Gini analysis of cross-county differences in mortality from 1980 to 2014.

    PubMed

    Skaftun, Eirin K; Verguet, Stéphane; Norheim, Ole F; Johansson, Kjell A

    2018-05-24

    This study aims at quantifying the level and changes over time of inequality in age-specific mortality and life expectancy between the 19 Norwegian counties from 1980 to 2014. Data on population and mortality by county was obtained from Statistics Norway for 1980-2014. Life expectancy and age-specific mortality rates (0-4, 5-49 and 50-69 age groups) were estimated by year and county. Geographic inequality was described by the absolute Gini index annually. Life expectancy in Norway has increased from 75.6 to 82.0 years, and the risk of death before the age of 70 has decreased from 26 to 14% from 1980 to 2014. The absolute Gini index decreased over the period 1980 to 2014 from 0.43 to 0.32 for life expectancy, from 0.012 to 0.0057 for the age group 50-69 years, from 0.0038 to 0.0022 for the age group 5-49 years, and from 0.0009 to 0.0006 for the age group 0-4 years. It will take between 2 and 32 years (national average 7 years) until the counties catch up with the life expectancy in the best performing county if their annual rates of increase remain unchanged. Using the absolute Gini index as a metric for monitoring changes in geographic inequality over time may be a valuable tool for informing public health policies. The absolute inequality in mortality and life expectancy between Norwegian counties has decreased from 1980 to 2014.

  13. Widening educational inequalities in adolescent smoking following national tobacco control policies in the Netherlands in 2003: a time-series analysis.

    PubMed

    Kuipers, Mirte A G; Nagelhout, Gera E; Willemsen, Marc C; Kunst, Anton E

    2014-10-01

    In 2003, the Netherlands introduced tobacco control policies, including bans on tobacco sales to minors, advertising and sponsoring and tobacco sales in government institutions. We examined the extent to which these policies were associated with a change in educational inequalities in adolescent smoking. Repeated cross-sectional survey. The Netherlands, 1992-2011. A total of 43 527 14-19-year-old adolescents. Data were obtained from the national Youth Smoking Monitor. We used logistic regression analyses to model the immediate change in daily smoking prevalence in 2003, the trends and the changes in trends. Models included interactions between educational level (high versus low, based on the educational track of the respondent) and, respectively, period (after versus before 2003), time and time × period. Before 2003 the smoking trend declined slightly, and the decline was comparable for students of both high and low educational levels. Immediately after tobacco policies were introduced, daily smoking prevalence dropped for the total population [regression coefficient (β) = -0.340, 95% confidence interval (CI) = -0.445; -0.236]. This drop was larger for high educational level compared to low educational level (β interaction = -0.400, 95% CI = -0.623; -0.176). After 2003, trends in educational inequalities in smoking stabilized. Following the introduction of new tobacco control policies in the Netherlands in 2003, smoking prevalence rates decreased among adolescents of both higher and lower educational levels. However, socio-economic inequalities in adolescent smoking increased. © 2014 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  14. Educational Inequalities among Latin American Adolescents: Continuities and Changes over the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s

    PubMed Central

    Marteleto, Letícia; Gelber, Denisse; Hubert, Celia; Salinas, Viviana

    2012-01-01

    The goal of this paper is to examine recent trends in educational stratification for Latin American adolescents growing up in three distinct periods: the 1980s, during severe recession; the 1990s, a period of structural adjustments imposed by international organizations; and the late 2000s, when most countries in the region experienced positive and stable growth. In addition to school enrollment and educational transitions, we examine the quality of education through enrollment in private schools, an important aspect of inequality in education that most studies have neglected. We use nationally representative household survey data for the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s in Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Uruguay. Our overall findings confirm the importance of macroeconomic conditions for inequalities in educational opportunity, suggesting important benefits brought up by the favorable conditions of the 2000s. However, our findings also call attention to increasing disadvantages associated with the quality of the education adolescents receive, suggesting the significance of the EMI framework—Effectively Maintained Inequality—and highlighting the value of examining the quality in addition to the quantity of education in order to fully understand educational stratification in the Latin American context. PMID:22962512

  15. Are health inequalities rooted in the past? Income inequalities in metabolic syndrome decomposed by childhood conditions

    PubMed Central

    San Sebastian, Miguel; Ivarsson, Anneli; Weinehall, Lars; Gustafsson, Per E.

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Background: Early life is thought of as a foundation for health inequalities in adulthood. However, research directly examining the contribution of childhood circumstances to the integrated phenomenon of adult social inequalities in health is absent. The present study aimed to examine whether, and to what degree, social conditions during childhood explain income inequalities in metabolic syndrome in mid-adulthood. Methods: The sample (N = 12 481) comprised all 40- and 50-year-old participants in the Västerbotten Intervention Program in Northern Sweden 2008, 2009 and 2010. Measures from health examinations were used to operationalize metabolic syndrome, which was linked to register data including socioeconomic conditions at age 40–50 years, as well as childhood conditions at participant age 10–12 years. Income inequality in metabolic syndrome in middle age was estimated by the concentration index and decomposed by childhood and current socioeconomic conditions using decomposition analysis. Results: Childhood conditions jointed explained 7% (men) to 10% (women) of health inequalities in middle age. Adding mid-adulthood sociodemographic factors showed a dominant contribution of chiefly current income and educational level in both gender. In women, the addition of current factors slightly attenuated the contribution of childhood conditions, but with paternal income and education still contributing. In contrast, the corresponding addition in men removed all explanation attributable to childhood conditions. Conclusions: Despite that the influence of early life conditions to adult health inequalities was considerably smaller than that of concurrent conditions, the study suggests that early interventions against social inequalities potentially could reduce health inequalities in the adult population for decades to come. PMID:27744345

  16. [Inequalities on indicators of chronic conditions among adults in Mexico: analysis of three health surveys].

    PubMed

    Gutiérrez, Juan Pablo; García-Saisó, Sebastián; Espinosa-de la Peña, Rodrigo; Balandrán, Dulce Alejandra

    2016-01-01

    To analyze trends from 2000 to 2012 in socioeconomic inequalities in health related to diabetes and hypertension indicators in Mexico. Cross-sectional analysis of three national health surveys (2000, 2006 and 2012), measuring inequality using absolute and relative gaps as well as the Slope Index of Inequality for diabetes and hypertension indicators. From 2000 to 2012, there is a reduction in the gap related to the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes and hypertension, with a parallel reduction in the inequality related to care for those conditions, while an inequality gradient on diabetes care remains. While there is an evident progress in the reduction of inequalities for diabetes and hypertension diagnostic and care in Mexico, some inequalities remain. Given the contribution of these conditions to the burden of disease in the country, there is a need to strength the quality of health services that will promote effective access.

  17. Inequalities in Educational Resources: Their Impact on Minorities and the Poor in Texas and California. Final Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brischetto, Robert; Arciniega, Tomas A.

    This research effort examines inequalities in educational input resources among school systems in Texas and California in light of the Rodriguez and Serrano court cases. Low-income families in both states were found to be in districts of low per-pupil-Expenditures and inferior educational services primarily because they are located in districts…

  18. Global Inequality, Capabilities, Social Justice: The Millennium Development Goal for Gender Equality in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Unterhalter, E.

    2005-01-01

    The Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for gender equality in education by 2005 has been criticised for its grandiose ambition, its failure to adequately conceptualise the nature of gender inequality or the diverse forms this takes, the inadequate policies developed to put the goal into practice and the limited measurements used for monitoring. The…

  19. Cultural Capital or Habitus? Bourdieu and beyond in the Explanation of Enduring Educational Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Edgerton, Jason D.; Roberts, Lance W.

    2014-01-01

    Evidence for Bourdieu's social reproduction theory and its contributions to understanding educational inequality has been relatively mixed. Critics discount the usefulness of core concepts such as cultural capital and habitus and most studies invoking these concepts have focused only on one or the other, often conflating the two, to the…

  20. The role of income inequality and social policies on income-related health inequalities in Europe.

    PubMed

    Jutz, Regina

    2015-10-31

    The aim of the paper is to examine the role of income inequality and redistribution for income-related health inequalities in Europe. This paper contributes in two ways to the literature on macro determinants of socio-economic inequalities in health. First, it widens the distinctive focus of the research field on welfare state regimes to quantifiable measures such as social policy indicators. Second, looking at income differences completes studies on socio-economic health inequalities, which often analyse health inequalities based on educational differences. Using data from the European Values Study (2008/2009), 42 European countries are available for analysis. Country characteristics are derived from SWIID, Eurostat, and ILO and include indicators for income inequality, social policies, and economic performance. The data is analysed by using a two-step hierarchical estimation approach: At the first step-the individual level-the effect of household income on self-assessed health is extracted and introduced as an indicator measuring income-related health inequalities at the second step, the country-level. Individual-level analyses reveal that income-related health inequalities exist all across Europe. Results from country-level analyses show that higher income inequality is significantly positively related to higher health inequalities while social policies do not show significant relations. Nevertheless, the results show the expected negative association between social policies and health inequalities. Economic performance also has a reducing influence on health inequalities. In all models, income inequality was the dominating explanatory effect for health inequalities. The analyses indicate that income inequality has more impact on health inequalities than social policies. On the contrary, social policies seemed to matter to all individuals regardless of socio-economic position since it is significantly positively linked to overall population health. Even though

  1. Inequality in Human Capital and Endogenous Credit Constraints

    PubMed Central

    Hai, Rong; Heckman, James J.

    2017-01-01

    This paper investigates the determinants of inequality in human capital with an emphasis on the role of the credit constraints. We develop and estimate a model in which individuals face uninsured human capital risks and invest in education, acquire work experience, accumulate assets and smooth consumption. Agents can borrow from the private lending market and from government student loan programs. The private market credit limit is explicitly derived by extending the natural borrowing limit of Aiyagari (1994) to incorporate endogenous labor supply, human capital accumulation, psychic costs of working, and age. We quantify the effects of cognitive ability, noncognitive ability, parental education, and parental wealth on educational attainment, wages, and consumption. We conduct counterfactual experiments with respect to tuition subsidies and enhanced student loan limits and evaluate their effects on educational attainment and inequality. We compare the performance of our model with an influential ad hoc model in the literature with education-specific fixed loan limits. We find evidence of substantial life cycle credit constraints that affect human capital accumulation and inequality. The constrained fall into two groups: those who are permanently poor over their lifetimes and a group of well-endowed individuals with rising high levels of acquired skills who are constrained early in their life cycles. Equalizing cognitive and noncognitive ability has dramatic effects on inequality. Equalizing parental backgrounds has much weaker effects. Tuition costs have weak effects on inequality. PMID:28642641

  2. Inequality in Human Capital and Endogenous Credit Constraints.

    PubMed

    Hai, Rong; Heckman, James J

    2017-04-01

    This paper investigates the determinants of inequality in human capital with an emphasis on the role of the credit constraints. We develop and estimate a model in which individuals face uninsured human capital risks and invest in education, acquire work experience, accumulate assets and smooth consumption. Agents can borrow from the private lending market and from government student loan programs. The private market credit limit is explicitly derived by extending the natural borrowing limit of Aiyagari (1994) to incorporate endogenous labor supply, human capital accumulation, psychic costs of working, and age. We quantify the effects of cognitive ability, noncognitive ability, parental education, and parental wealth on educational attainment, wages, and consumption. We conduct counterfactual experiments with respect to tuition subsidies and enhanced student loan limits and evaluate their effects on educational attainment and inequality. We compare the performance of our model with an influential ad hoc model in the literature with education-specific fixed loan limits. We find evidence of substantial life cycle credit constraints that affect human capital accumulation and inequality. The constrained fall into two groups: those who are permanently poor over their lifetimes and a group of well-endowed individuals with rising high levels of acquired skills who are constrained early in their life cycles. Equalizing cognitive and noncognitive ability has dramatic effects on inequality. Equalizing parental backgrounds has much weaker effects. Tuition costs have weak effects on inequality.

  3. Social inequalities, regional disparities and health inequity in North African countries.

    PubMed

    Boutayeb, Abdesslam; Helmert, Uwe

    2011-05-31

    During the last decades, North African countries have substantially improved economic, social and health conditions of their populations in average. In all countries, human development in general and life expectancy, literacy and per capita income in particular have increased. However, improvement was not equally shared between groups of different milieu, regions or level of income. Social inequalities and health inequity have persisted or even worsened. Data are generally scarce and few studies were devoted to this topic in North Africa as a region. In this paper, we carry out a comparative study on the achievements of these countries, not only in terms of human development and its components but also in terms of inequalities' reduction and health equity. This study is based on data available for comparison between North African countries. The main data sources are provided by reports released by the World Health Organisation (WHO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Bank, surveys such as Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) and finally recent papers published on equity in different countries of the region. There is no doubt that education, health and human development in general have improved in North Africa during the last decades. Improvement was, however, uneven and unequally enjoyed by different socioeconomic groups. Indeed, each country included in this study shows large urban-rural disparities, discrepancies between advantaged and disadvantaged regions and cities; and unacceptable differences between rich and poor. Health inequity is particularly seen through access to health services and infant mortality. During the last decades, North African decision makers have endeavoured to improve social and economic conditions of their populations. Globally, health, education and living standard in general have substantially improved in average. However, North

  4. Racial Inequality in Education in Brazil: A Twins Fixed-Effects Approach.

    PubMed

    Marteleto, Letícia J; Dondero, Molly

    2016-08-01

    Racial disparities in education in Brazil (and elsewhere) are well documented. Because this research typically examines educational variation between individuals in different families, however, it cannot disentangle whether racial differences in education are due to racial discrimination or to structural differences in unobserved neighborhood and family characteristics. To address this common data limitation, we use an innovative within-family twin approach that takes advantage of the large sample of Brazilian adolescent twins classified as different races in the 1982 and 1987-2009 Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios. We first examine the contexts within which adolescent twins in the same family are labeled as different races to determine the characteristics of families crossing racial boundaries. Then, as a way to hold constant shared unobserved and observed neighborhood and family characteristics, we use twins fixed-effects models to assess whether racial disparities in education exist between twins and whether such disparities vary by gender. We find that even under this stringent test of racial inequality, the nonwhite educational disadvantage persists and is especially pronounced for nonwhite adolescent boys.

  5. Racial Inequality in Education in Brazil: A Twins Fixed-Effects Approach

    PubMed Central

    Marteleto, Letícia; Dondero, Molly

    2016-01-01

    Racial disparities in education in Brazil (and elsewhere) are well documented. Because this research typically examines educational variation between individuals in different families, however, it cannot disentangle whether racial differences in education are due to racial discrimination or to structural differences in unobserved neighborhood and family characteristics. To address this common data limitation, we use an innovative within-family twin approach that takes advantage of the large sample of Brazilian adolescent twins classified as different races in the 1982 and 1987–2009 Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios. We first examine the contexts within which adolescent twins in the same family are labeled as different races to determine the characteristics of families crossing racial boundaries. Then, as a way to hold constant shared unobserved and observed neighborhood and family characteristics, we use twins fixed-effects models to assess whether racial disparities in education exist between twins and whether such disparities vary by gender. We find that even under this stringent test of racial inequality, the nonwhite educational disadvantage persists and is especially pronounced for nonwhite adolescent boys. PMID:27443551

  6. Teaching social inequalities in health: barriers and opportunities.

    PubMed

    Muntaner, C

    1999-09-01

    This article examines some of the main threats and new opportunities encountered by teachers of social inequalities in health in contemporary academia. Focusing mostly on the recent US and European experiences, I suggest that lay world views legitimating social inequalities are often in conflict with explanations arising from social epidemiology and medical sociology. The dominance of medicine in public health, through its often implicit assumptions about the biological determinants of human behaviour, is also identified as a barrier to teaching social inequalities in health. Educational elitism, which restricts higher education to members of the upper middle class, is identified as another barrier to teaching social inequalities in health. On the other hand, teachers in this field can benefit from a recent growth of empirical studies during the last decade aimed at understanding the social determinants of health inequalities. Finally, I suggest that familiarity with current critical scholarship within public health, as well as the use of techniques developed by sociologists to teach social stratification, can be valuable resources for teaching social inequalities in health.

  7. State-level income inequality and family burden of U.S. families raising children with special health care needs.

    PubMed

    Parish, Susan L; Rose, Roderick A; Dababnah, Sarah; Yoo, Joan; Cassiman, Shawn A

    2012-02-01

    Growing evidence supports the hypothesis that income inequality within a nation influences health outcomes net of the effect of any given household's absolute income. We tested the hypothesis that state-level income inequality in the United States is associated with increased family burden for care and health-related expenditures for low-income families of children with special health care needs. We analyzed the 2005-06 wave of the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs, a probability sample of approximately 750 children with special health care needs in each state and the District of Columbia in the US Our measure of state-level income inequality was the Gini coefficient. Dependent measures of family caregiving burden included whether the parent received help arranging or coordinating the child's care and whether the parent stopped working due to the child's health. Dependent measures of family financial burden included absolute burden (spending in past 12 months for child's health care needs) and relative burden (spending as a proportion of total family income). After controlling for a host of child, family, and state factors, including family income and measures of the severity of a child's impairments, state-level income inequality has a significant and independent association with family burden related to the health care of their children with special health care needs. Families of children with special health care needs living in states with greater levels of income inequality report higher rates of absolute and relative financial burden. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Primary care and health inequality: Difference-in-difference study comparing England and Ontario

    PubMed Central

    Cookson, Richard; Mondor, Luke; Kringos, Dionne S.; Klazinga, Niek S.

    2017-01-01

    Background It is not known whether equity-oriented primary care investment that seeks to scale up the delivery of effective care in disadvantaged communities can reduce health inequality within high-income settings that have pre-existing universal primary care systems. We provide some non-randomised controlled evidence by comparing health inequality trends between two similar jurisdictions–one of which implemented equity-oriented primary care investment in the mid-to-late 2000s as part of a cross-government strategy for reducing health inequality (England), and one which invested in primary care without any explicit equity objective (Ontario, Canada). Methods We analysed whole-population data on 32,482 neighbourhoods (with mean population size of approximately 1,500 people) in England, and 18,961 neighbourhoods (with mean population size of approximately 700 people) in Ontario. We examined trends in mortality amenable to healthcare by decile groups of neighbourhood deprivation within each jurisdiction. We used linear models to estimate absolute and relative gaps in amenable mortality between most and least deprived groups, considering the gradient between these extremes, and evaluated difference-in-difference comparisons between the two jurisdictions. Results Inequality trends were comparable in both jurisdictions from 2004–6 but diverged from 2007–11. Compared with Ontario, the absolute gap in amenable mortality in England fell between 2004–6 and 2007–11 by 19.8 per 100,000 population (95% CI: 4.8 to 34.9); and the relative gap in amenable mortality fell by 10 percentage points (95% CI: 1 to 19). The biggest divergence occurred in the most deprived decile group of neighbourhoods. Discussion In comparison to Ontario, England succeeded in reducing absolute socioeconomic gaps in mortality amenable to healthcare from 2007 to 2011, and preventing them from growing in relative terms. Equity-oriented primary care reform in England in the mid-to-late 2000s may

  9. Primary care and health inequality: Difference-in-difference study comparing England and Ontario.

    PubMed

    Cookson, Richard; Mondor, Luke; Asaria, Miqdad; Kringos, Dionne S; Klazinga, Niek S; Wodchis, Walter P

    2017-01-01

    It is not known whether equity-oriented primary care investment that seeks to scale up the delivery of effective care in disadvantaged communities can reduce health inequality within high-income settings that have pre-existing universal primary care systems. We provide some non-randomised controlled evidence by comparing health inequality trends between two similar jurisdictions-one of which implemented equity-oriented primary care investment in the mid-to-late 2000s as part of a cross-government strategy for reducing health inequality (England), and one which invested in primary care without any explicit equity objective (Ontario, Canada). We analysed whole-population data on 32,482 neighbourhoods (with mean population size of approximately 1,500 people) in England, and 18,961 neighbourhoods (with mean population size of approximately 700 people) in Ontario. We examined trends in mortality amenable to healthcare by decile groups of neighbourhood deprivation within each jurisdiction. We used linear models to estimate absolute and relative gaps in amenable mortality between most and least deprived groups, considering the gradient between these extremes, and evaluated difference-in-difference comparisons between the two jurisdictions. Inequality trends were comparable in both jurisdictions from 2004-6 but diverged from 2007-11. Compared with Ontario, the absolute gap in amenable mortality in England fell between 2004-6 and 2007-11 by 19.8 per 100,000 population (95% CI: 4.8 to 34.9); and the relative gap in amenable mortality fell by 10 percentage points (95% CI: 1 to 19). The biggest divergence occurred in the most deprived decile group of neighbourhoods. In comparison to Ontario, England succeeded in reducing absolute socioeconomic gaps in mortality amenable to healthcare from 2007 to 2011, and preventing them from growing in relative terms. Equity-oriented primary care reform in England in the mid-to-late 2000s may have helped to reduce socioeconomic inequality in

  10. Opportunity to Learn: The Role of Prompting Cognitive Shifts in Understanding and Addressing Educational Inequities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Allwarden, Ann F.

    2014-01-01

    This dissertation examines how district- and school-level leaders' understanding of achievement gaps influences the work of leadership in addressing educational inequities and broadening students' opportunity to learn. While the reporting of disaggregated data by student subgroup confirms that achievement gaps exist, reports from high-stakes…

  11. Why poverty remains high: the role of income growth, economic inequality, and changes in family structure, 1949-1999.

    PubMed

    Iceland, John

    2003-08-01

    After dramatic declines in poverty from 1950 to the early 1970s in the United States, progress stalled. This article examines the association between trends in poverty and income growth, economic inequality, and changes in family structure using three measures of poverty: an absolute measure, a relative measure, and a quasi-relative one. I found that income growth explains most of the trend in absolute poverty, while inequality generally plays the most significant role in explaining trends in relative poverty. Rising inequality in the 1970s and 1980s was especially important in explaining increases in poverty among Hispanics, whereas changes in family structure played a significant role for children and African Americans through 1990. Notably, changes in family structure no longer had a significant association with trends in poverty for any group in the 1990s.

  12. For whom is income inequality most harmful? A multi-level analysis of income inequality and mortality in Norway.

    PubMed

    Dahl, Espen; Ivar Elstad, Jon; Hofoss, Dag; Martin-Mollard, Melissa

    2006-11-01

    This study investigates the degree to which contextual income inequality in economic regions in Norway affected mortality during the 1990s, above the effects of mean regional income and individual-level confounders. A further objective is to explore whether income inequality effects on mortality differed between socioeconomic groups. Data were constructed by linkages of administrative registers encompassing all Norwegian inhabitants. The outcome variable was all-cause mortality during 6 years (i.e., died 1994-1999 or alive end of 1999). Men and women aged 25-66 in 1993 were analysed. Regions' mean income and income inequality (in terms of gini coefficients) were calculated from consumption-units-adjusted family disposable income. Individual-level variables included sex, age, marital status, individual income, education, and being a recipient of health-related welfare benefits. Multilevel logistic regression models were fitted for 2,197,231 individuals nested within 88 regions. After adjusting for regional mean income and individual-level variables, the odds ratio (OR) for mortality 1994-1999 was 1.028 (95% CI 1.023-1.033) on the gini variable multiplied by 100. Analyses of cross-level interactions indicated some, albeit modest, income inequality effects on mortality in the upper income and educational categories. Among those with low individual income, low education, and among recipients of health-related welfare benefits, mortality effects of higher regional income inequality were significantly stronger than among those more advantageously placed in the social structure. The results of this study differ from previous studies which have suggested that contextual income inequality has a minor impact on population health in egalitarian countries. The results indicate that in Norway, neither a comparatively egalitarian income distribution nor generous and comprehensive welfare institutions hindered the emergence of regional-level income inequality effects on mortality

  13. Trends in Social Inequality in Tooth Brushing among Adolescents: 1991-2014.

    PubMed

    Holstein, Bjørn E; Bast, Lotus Sofie; Brixval, Carina Sjöberg; Damsgaard, Mogens Trab

    2015-01-01

    This study examines whether social inequality in tooth brushing frequency among adolescents changed from 1991 to 2014. The data material was seven comparable cross-sectional studies of nationally representative samples of 11- to 15-year-olds in Denmark with data about frequency of tooth brushing and occupation of parents. The total number of participants was 31,464, of whom 21.7% brushed their teeth less than the recommended 2 times a day. The absolute social inequality measured as prevalence difference between low and high social class increased from 7.7% in 1991 to 14.6% in 2014. The relative social inequality assessed by odds ratios for infrequent tooth brushing also increased from 1991 to 2014. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  14. Trends in socioeconomic inequalities in cancer mortality in Barcelona: 1992-2003.

    PubMed

    Puigpinós, Rosa; Borrell, Carme; Antunes, José Leopoldo Ferreira; Azlor, Enric; Pasarín, M Isabel; Serral, Gemma; Pons-Vigués, Mariona; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica; Fernández, Esteve

    2009-01-23

    The objective of this study was to assess trends in cancer mortality by educational level in Barcelona from 1992 to 2003. The study population comprised Barcelona inhabitants aged 20 years or older. Data on cancer deaths were supplied by the system of information on mortality. Educational level was obtained from the municipal census. Age-standardized rates by educational level were calculated. We also fitted Poisson regression models to estimate the relative index of inequality (RII) and the Slope Index of Inequalities (SII). All were calculated for each sex and period (1992-1994, 1995-1997, 1998-2000, and 2001-2003). Cancer mortality was higher in men and women with lower educational level throughout the study period. Less-schooled men had higher mortality by stomach, mouth and pharynx, oesophagus, larynx and lung cancer. In women, there were educational inequalities for cervix uteri, liver and colon cancer. Inequalities of overall and specific types of cancer mortality remained stable in Barcelona; although a slight reduction was observed for some cancers. This study has identified those cancer types presenting the greatest inequalities between men and women in recent years and shown that in Barcelona there is a stable trend in inequalities in the burden of cancer.

  15. [Inequalities in health in Italy].

    PubMed

    Caiazzo, Antonio; Cardano, Mario; Cois, Ester; Costa, Giuseppe; Marinacci, Chiara; Spadea, Teresa; Vannoni, Francesca; Venturini, Lorenzo

    2004-01-01

    Socioeconomic inequality and its impact on health is a growing concern in the European public health debate. In many countries, the issue is moving away from description towards the identification of the determinants of inequalities and the development of policies explicitly aimed at reducing inequalities in health. In Italy, ten years after the publication of the first report on inequalities in health, this topic is seldom present on the agenda of public policy makers. The purpose of this report is to update the Italian profile of social variation in health and health care in order to stimulate the debate on ways to tackle inequalities in health that are preventable. In the first section of this book, the threefold objective is to describe the principal mechanisms involved in the generation of social inequalities in health (Introduction); to report Italian data on the distribution and magnitude of this phenomenon in the last decade; and to evaluate policies and interventions in both the social (chapter 1.9, Section I) and the health sector (chapter 2.3, Section I), which are potentially useful to reduce health inequalities. It is intended for anyone who is in a position to contribute t o decision-making that will benefit the health of communities. For this reason, chapters are organized by specific determinants of inequalities on which interentions may have an impact. The methodological approach in the second section focuses on the best methods to monitor social inequalities including recommendations on social indicators, sources of information and study models, based on European guidelines revised for the Italian situation. According to data from national and local studies, mortality increases linearly with social disadvantage for a wide range of indicators at both the individual (education, social class, income, quality of housing) and the geographical level (deprivation indexes computed at different levels of aggregation). This positive correlation is evident

  16. Higher Education Policy Reform in Ethiopia: The Representation of the Problem of Gender Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Molla, Tebeje

    2013-01-01

    The higher education (HE) subsystem in Ethiopia has passed through a series of policy reforms in the last 10 years. Key reform areas ranged from improving quality and relevance of programmes to promoting equality in access to and success in HE. Despite the effort underway, gender inequality has remained a critical challenge in the subsystem. This…

  17. Dying in hospital: socioeconomic inequality trends in England

    PubMed Central

    Asaria, Miqdad; Sheringham, Jessica; Stone, Patrick; Raine, Rosalind; Cookson, Richard

    2017-01-01

    Objective To describe trends in socioeconomic inequality in the proportion of deaths occurring in hospital, during a period of sustained effort by the NHS in England to improve end of life care. Methods Whole-population, small area longitudinal study involving 5,260,871 patients of all ages who died in England from 2001/2002 to 2011/2012. Our primary measure of inequality was the slope index of inequality. This represents the estimated gap between the most and least deprived neighbourhood in England, allowing for the gradient in between. Neighbourhoods were geographic Lower Layer Super Output Areas containing about 1500 people each. Results The overall proportion of patients dying in hospital decreased from 49.5% to 43.6% during the study period, after initially increasing to 52.0% in 2004/2005. There was substantial ‘pro-rich’ inequality, with an estimated difference of 5.95 percentage points in the proportion of people dying in hospital (confidence interval 5.26 to 6.63), comparing the most and least deprived neighbourhoods in 2011/2012. There was no significant reduction in this gap over time, either in absolute terms or relative to the mean, despite the overall reduction in the proportion of patients dying in hospital. Conclusions Efforts to reduce the proportion of patients dying in hospital in England have been successful overall but did not reduce inequality. Greater understanding of the reasons for such inequality is required before policy changes can be determined. PMID:28429981

  18. Earnings Inequality in the Nonmetropolitan United States: 1967-1990.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tolbert, Charles M.; Lyson, Thomas A.

    1992-01-01

    Analysis of census data indicates that earnings inequality among full-time workers increased in the 1980s. Compared to metropolitan areas, nonmetro economic inequality was greater and was explained better by both neoclassical and restructuring frameworks. Gender and college education accounted for far more earnings inequality than other sources…

  19. Why reduce health inequalities?

    PubMed

    Woodward, A; Kawachi, I

    2000-12-01

    It is well known that social, cultural and economic factors cause substantial inequalities in health. Should we strive to achieve a more even share of good health, beyond improving the average health status of the population? We examine four arguments for the reduction of health inequalities.1 Inequalities are unfair. Inequalities in health are undesirable to the extent that they are unfair, or unjust. Distinguishing between health inequalities and health inequities can be contentious. Our view is that inequalities become "unfair" when poor health is itself the consequence of an unjust distribution of the underlying social determinants of health (for example, unequal opportunities in education or employment).2 Inequalities affect everyone. Conditions that lead to marked health disparities are detrimental to all members of society. Some types of health inequalities have obvious spillover effects on the rest of society, for example, the spread of infectious diseases, the consequences of alcohol and drug misuse, or the occurrence of violence and crime.3 Inequalities are avoidable. Disparities in health are avoidable to the extent that they stem from identifiable policy options exercised by governments, such as tax policy, regulation of business and labour, welfare benefits and health care funding. It follows that health inequalities are, in principle, amenable to policy interventions. A government that cares about improving the health of the population ought therefore to incorporate considerations of the health impact of alternative options in its policy setting process.3 Interventions to reduce health inequalities are cost effective. Public health programmes that reduce health inequalities can also be cost effective. The case can be made to give priority to such programmes (for example, improving access to cervical cancer screening in low income women) on efficiency grounds. On the other hand, few programmes designed to reduce health inequalities have been formally

  20. Decomposing socioeconomic inequality in infant mortality in Iran.

    PubMed

    Hosseinpoor, Ahmad Reza; Van Doorslaer, Eddy; Speybroeck, Niko; Naghavi, Mohsen; Mohammad, Kazem; Majdzadeh, Reza; Delavar, Bahram; Jamshidi, Hamidreza; Vega, Jeanette

    2006-10-01

    Although measuring socioeconomic inequality in population health indicators like infant mortality is important, more interesting for policy purposes is to try to explain infant mortality inequality. The objective of this paper is to quantify for the first time the determinants' contributions of socioeconomic inequality in infant mortality in Iran. A nationally representative sample of 108 875 live births from October 1990 to September 1999 was selected. The data were taken from the Iranian Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) conducted in 2000. Households' socioeconomic status was measured using principal component analysis. The concentration index of infant mortality was used as our measure of socioeconomic inequality and decomposed into its determining factors. The largest contributions to inequality in infant mortality were owing to household economic status (36.2%) and mother's education (20.9%). Residency in rural/urban areas (13.9%), birth interval (13.0%), and hygienic status of toilet (11.9%) also proved important contributors to the measured inequality. The findings indicate that socioeconomic inequality in infant mortality in Iran is determined not only by health system functions but also by factors beyond the scope of health authorities and care delivery system. This implies that in addition to reducing inequalities in wealth and education, investments in water and sanitation infrastructure and programmes (especially in rural areas) are necessary to realize improvements of inequality in infant mortality across society. These findings can be instrumental for the recent 5 year Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan of Iran, which identified the reduction of inequalities in social determinants of health.

  1. Educational inequalities in patient-centred care: patients' preferences and experiences

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Educational attainment is strongly related to specific health outcomes. The pathway in which individual patient-provider interactions contribute to (re)producing these inequalities has yet to be studied. In this article, the focus is on differences between less and more highly educated patients in their preferences for and experiences with patient-centred care., e.g. shared decision making, receiving understandable explanations and being able to ask questions. Methods Data are derived from several Consumer Quality-index (CQ-index) studies. The CQ-index is a family of standardized instruments which are used in the Netherlands to measure quality of care from the patient’s perspective. Results The educational level of patients is directly related to the degree of importance patients attribute to specific aspects of patient-centred care. It has a minor influence on the experienced level of shared decision making, but not on experiences regarding other aspects of patient-centred care. Conclusions All patients regard patient-centred care as important and report positive experiences. However, there is a discrepancy between patient preferences for patient-centred care on one hand and the care received on the other. Less educated patients might receive ‘too much’, and more highly educated patients ‘too little’ in the domains of communication, information and shared decision making. PMID:22900589

  2. A critical review of social and health inequalities in the nursing curriculum.

    PubMed

    Rozendo, Célia Alves; Santos Salas, Anna; Cameron, Brenda

    2017-03-01

    Social and health inequalities are a reality around the world and one of the most important challenges in the current age. Nurse educators can respond to these challenges by incorporating curricular components to identify and intervene in social and health inequalities. To examine how social and health inequalities have been addressed in the nursing curriculum. Informed by the work of Paulo Freire, a critical literature review was performed to examine how social and health inequalities have been addressed in the nursing curriculum. In July 2015, we searched for articles published from 2000 to 2015 in ERIC, CINAHL, Web of Science, Scielo, MEDLINE and LILACS databases. Main search terms included "disparity" or "inequality" and "curriculum" and "nursing." We included studies published in academic journals in English, Portuguese and Spanish. A total of 20 articles were included in this review. Most of the articles (15) were from the United States and described educational experiences in implementing courses in nursing undergraduate curricula. Limited experiences with graduate nursing education were identified. Social and health inequalities were approached in these articles through elements such as social justice, cultural competence, cultural safety, and advocacy. A concern to reduce social and health disparities was noted. We identified three major themes in the articles included in this review: 1) elements in the curricula that can contribute to reducing social and health inequalities; 2) educational and research strategies used to address the theme of inequalities; 3) a focus on socially vulnerable populations to increase awareness on social and health inequalities. Findings suggest that nursing education initiatives align with the recommendations from the World Health Organization to address disparities. There is also a need to identify existing conceptual and practical content on inequalities in the nursing curriculum through future research. Copyright © 2016

  3. Individual-level socioeconomic status and community-level inequality as determinants of stigma towards persons living with HIV who inject drugs in Thai Nguyen, Vietnam

    PubMed Central

    Lim, Travis; Zelaya, Carla; Latkin, Carl; Quan, Vu Minh; Frangakis, Constantine; Ha, Tran Viet; Minh, Nguyen Le; Go, Vivian

    2013-01-01

    Introduction HIV infection may be affected by multiple complex socioeconomic status (SES) factors, especially individual socioeconomic disadvantage and community-level inequality. At the same time, stigma towards HIV and marginalized groups has exacerbated persistent concentrated epidemics among key populations, such as persons who inject drugs (PWID) in Vietnam. Stigma researchers argue that stigma fundamentally depends on the existence of economic power differences in a community. In rapidly growing economies like Vietnam, the increasing gap in income and education levels, as well as an individual's absolute income and education, may create social conditions that facilitate stigma related to injecting drug use and HIV. Methods A cross-sectional baseline survey assessing different types of stigma and key socioeconomic characteristics was administered to 1674 PWID and 1349 community members living in physical proximity throughout the 32 communes in Thai Nguyen province, Vietnam. We created four stigma scales, including HIV-related and drug-related stigma reported by both PWID and community members. We then used ecologic Spearman's correlation, ordinary least-squares regression and multi-level generalized estimating equations to examine community-level inequality associations, individual-level SES associations and multi-level SES associations with different types of stigma, respectively. Results There was little urban–rural difference in stigma among communes. Higher income inequality was marginally associated with drug-related stigma reported by community members (p=0.087), and higher education inequality was significantly associated with higher HIV-related stigma reported by both PWID and community members (p<0.05). For individuals, higher education was significantly associated with lower stigma (HIV and drug related) reported by both PWID and community members. Part-time employed PWID reported more experiences and perceptions of drug-related stigma, while

  4. Inequality in Ghanaian secondary schools: Educational expansion, recruitment, and internal stratification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weis, Lois

    1983-03-01

    Researchers disagree as to whether expansion of an educational system leads primarily to greater equality of opportunity or the further reproduction of inequality. This article addresses this question through an examination of the social background characteristics of Ghanaian secondary school students in 1961 and 1974. Students in varying quality schools are compared as to their socio-economic status and urban experience. The data suggest that not only are children of relatively high-status parents gaining increased access to school, but that they are doing so increasingly in high-status institutions.

  5. Social and diagnostic inequality in health.

    PubMed

    Bringedal, Berit; Tufte, Per Arne

    2012-11-01

    Empirical studies of social inequalities in health commonly take the diagnosing of disease for granted. Social inequalities in health are seen as the result of social processes, yet the diagnosis itself is rarely considered to contribute to such inequality. We argue that the influence of sociocultural and cognitive bias in the diagnosing process follows a social pattern, such that certain diagnoses are disproportionally over- or underrepresented in different socioeconomic groups due to interpretive bias of underlying symptoms. Norwegian data on sick leave for diffuse musculoskeletal and diffuse psychiatric disease in 2006 were analysed to study the distribution of the two diagnoses in different status groups. Socioeconomic status was measured by years of education. Diagnoses and occupational codes were based on national registers; diagnoses in accordance with the International Classification of Primary Care second edition. We compared occupations in technical sectors to occupations in the health sector and the relative number of cases of sick leave controlled for years of education, gender, occupational sector, and diagnosis. Data were analysed by cross-tabulation, ratio of diffuse psychiatric/musculoskeletal diseases, and logistic regression. The ratio of diffuse psychiatric/musculoskeletal diseases increases with education and decreases if the employee works in a technical job. The results challenge the traditional explanation that job features alone can explain the distribution of disease and suggest that a part of the persistent social inequality in health can be caused by the diagnosing process. In order to reach a better understanding of the processes behind the social inequalities in health, the diagnosing process itself should also be studied.

  6. Inequality and inequity in access to health care and treatment for chronic conditions in China: the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study.

    PubMed

    Elwell-Sutton, Timothy M; Jiang, Chao Qiang; Zhang, Wei Sen; Cheng, Kar Keung; Lam, Tai H; Leung, Gabriel M; Schooling, C M

    2013-08-01

    Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a large and rapidly-growing problem in China and other middle-income countries. Clinical treatment of NCDs is long-term and expensive, so it may present particular problems for equality and horizontal equity (equal treatment for equal need) in access to health care, although little is known about this at present in low- and middle-income countries. To address this gap, and inform policy for a substantial proportion of the global population, we examined inequality and inequity in general health care utilization (doctor consultations and hospital admissions) and in treatment of chronic conditions (hypertension, hyperglycaemia and dyslipidaemia), in 30 499 Chinese adults aged ≥50 years from one of China's richest provinces, using the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study (2003-2008). We used concentration indices to test for inequality and inequity in utilization by household income per head. Inequality was decomposed to show the contributions of income, indicators of 'need for health care' (age, sex, self-rated health, coronary heart disease risk and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and non-need factors (education, occupation, out-of-pocket health care payments and health insurance). We found inequality and inequity in treatment of chronic conditions but not in general health care utilization. Using more objective and specific measures of 'need for health care' increased estimates of inequity for treatment of chronic conditions. Income and non-need factors (especially health insurance, education and occupation) made the largest contributions to inequality. Further work is needed on why access to treatment for chronic conditions in China is restricted for those on low incomes and how these inequities can be mitigated.

  7. School Choice and Educational Inequality in South Korea

    PubMed Central

    Byun, Soo-yong; Kim, Kyung-keun; Park, Hyunjoon

    2014-01-01

    This study examined the choice debate in South Korea, which centers on the residentially based school assignment policy called the High School Equalization Policy (HSEP). Using a nationally representative sample of South Korean 11th graders, the study further explored the role of the HSEP in educational equality by investigating how HSEP implementation was related to the separation of low and high socioeconomic status (SES) students between schools and how the socioeconomic composition of a school was related to student achievement. Results showed that the odds that low SES students were separated into low SES schools was smaller in the regions of HSEP implementation, where students were randomly assigned to a school based on place of residence, than in the regions of non-HSEP implementation, where students were allowed to choose a school. Results also showed that student achievement significantly depended on the socioeconomic composition of a school students attended in the regions of non-HSEP implementation, whereas this was not the case in the regions of HSEP implementation. We discussed the implications of these findings for the potential impact of school choice policies on educational inequality. PMID:24834021

  8. Review of "Charter School Funding: Inequity Expands"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baker, Bruce D.

    2014-01-01

    The University of Arkansas Center for Education Reform's report on charter school funding inequities proclaims large and growing inequities between school district and charter school revenues, even after accounting for differences in student needs. But the report displays complete lack of understanding of intergovernmental fiscal relationships,…

  9. Changes Over Time in Absolute and Relative Socioeconomic Differences in Smoking: A Comparison of Cohort Studies From Britain, Finland, and Japan

    PubMed Central

    Pietiläinen, Olli; Ferrie, Jane; Kivimäki, Mika; Lahti, Jouni; Marmot, Michael; Rahkonen, Ossi; Sekine, Michikazu; Shipley, Martin; Tatsuse, Takashi; Lallukka, Tea

    2016-01-01

    Introduction: Socioeconomic differences in smoking over time and across national contexts are poorly understood. We assessed the magnitude of relative and absolute social class differences in smoking in cohorts from Britain, Finland, and Japan over 5–7 years. Methods: The British Whitehall II study (n = 4350), Finnish Helsinki Health Study (n = 6328), and Japanese Civil Servants Study (n = 1993) all included employed men and women aged 35–68 at baseline in 1997–2002. Follow-up was in 2003–2007 (mean follow-up 5.1, 6.5, and 3.6 years, respectively). Occupational social class (managers, professionals and clerical employees) was measured at baseline. Current smoking and covariates (age, marital status, body mass index, and self-rated health) were measured at baseline and follow-up. We assessed relative social class differences using the Relative Index of Inequality and absolute differences using the Slope Index of Inequality. Results: Social class differences in smoking were found in Britain and Finland, but not in Japan. Age-adjusted relative differences at baseline ranged from Relative Index of Inequality 3.08 (95% confidence interval 1.99–4.78) among Finnish men to 2.32 (1.24–4.32) among British women, with differences at follow-up greater by 8%–58%. Absolute differences remained stable and varied from Slope Index of Inequality 0.27 (0.15–0.40) among Finnish men to 0.10 (0.03–0.16) among British women. Further adjustment for covariates had modest effects on inequality indices. Conclusions: Large social class differences in smoking persisted among British and Finnish men and women, with widening tendencies in relative differences over time. No differences could be confirmed among Japanese men or women. Implications: Changes over time in social class differences in smoking are poorly understood across countries. Our study focused on employees from Britain, Finland and Japan, and found relative and absolute and class differences among British and

  10. Classroom Conversations in the Study of Race and the Disruption of Social and Educational Inequalities: A Review of Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brown, Ayanna F.; Bloome, David; Morris, Jerome E.; Power-Carter, Stephanie; Willis, Arlette I.

    2017-01-01

    This review of research examines classroom conversations about race with a theoretical framing oriented to understanding how such conversations may disrupt social and educational inequalities. The review covers research on how classroom conversations on race contribute to students' and educators' understandings of a racialized society, their…

  11. Educational inequalities in health expectancy during the financial crisis in Denmark.

    PubMed

    Brønnum-Hansen, Henrik; Baadsgaard, Mikkel; Eriksen, Mette Lindholm; Andersen-Ranberg, Karen; Jeune, Bernard

    2015-12-01

    To investigate educational differentials in health expectancy among 50-year-old Danes before and during the financial crisis. Nationwide register data on mortality were combined with data from SHARE surveys in 2006/2007 and 2010/2011 to estimate disability-free life expectancy (DFLE) and expected lifetime in self-rated good health by educational level. The difference in life expectancy between 50-year-old men and women with high and low educational levels increased by 0.3 and 0.8 years, respectively. The overall educational differentials in DFLE did not change much for women, whereas for men the tendency was that DFLE increased for those with high educational level and decreased for those with less education ascending the difference by almost 2 years (from 5.9 to 7.8 years), although the difference was not statistically significant. The educational disparity in expected lifetime in self-rated good health increased by 1.3 years for men and 1.2 years for women. The social inequality in DFLE for men and expected lifetime in self-rated good health for both genders increased slightly during the short period. The financial crisis did not seem to indicate a change in the persistent trend of the widening social gap.

  12. Helping health and social care professionals to develop an 'inequalities imagination': a model for use in education and practice.

    PubMed

    Hart, Angie; Hall, Valerie; Henwood, Flis

    2003-03-01

    The 'inequalities imagination model' originated from our own research, and led to findings and recommendations regarding clinical and education issues. This article focuses on the creation of the model which, we suggest, could be used to facilitate the development of an 'inequalities imagination' in health and social care professionals. To describe and critically analyse the thinking that led to the concept of an 'inequalities imagination' and provide the framework for the theoretical model. Influencing concepts from the fields of social work, sociology, nursing and midwifery, and debates around antidiscriminatory and antioppressive practice, cultural safety, cultural competence and individualized care are analysed. INEQUALITIES IMAGINATION MODEL: Ideas generated from an analysis of the concepts of antidiscriminatory/anti-oppressive practice and from the research data led us to conceptualize a flexible model that incorporated issues of individual and structural agency and a broad definition of disadvantage. The literature review underpinning the theoretical framework means that the model has the potential to be truly interdisciplinary. Professional educators face a difficult task in preparing practitioners to work with clients in ways that take account of differences in background and lifestyle and which respect human rights and dignity. The model makes explicit a process that enables practitioners to think about their current practice and move towards a greater understanding and awareness of the way they work with disadvantaged clients, and ways in which they prepare others to do so. We suggest that professionals develop an 'inequalities imagination' in order to enhance equality of care. The development of an 'inequalities imagination' helps practitioners to bridge the gap between the challenges they face in day-to-day practice and what they need to achieve to aspire to provide equality of care to all.

  13. Literacy, Education, and Inequality: Assimilation and Resistance Narratives from Families Residing at a Homeless Shelter

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jacobs, Mary M.

    2014-01-01

    In this article, I draw on data from my qualitative dissertation study of the literacy practices of five families who resided in a homeless shelter to complicate the relationship between literacy, education, and inequality. Homelessness is examined through the lens of sponsorship to understand the differential access the families have to powerful…

  14. Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality from conditions amenable to medical interventions: do they reflect inequalities in access or quality of health care?

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Previous studies have reported large socioeconomic inequalities in mortality from conditions amenable to medical intervention, but it is unclear whether these can be attributed to inequalities in access or quality of health care, or to confounding influences such as inequalities in background risk of diseases. We therefore studied whether inequalities in mortality from conditions amenable to medical intervention vary between countries in patterns which differ from those observed for other (non-amenable) causes of death. More specifically, we hypothesized that, as compared to non-amenable causes, inequalities in mortality from amenable causes are more strongly associated with inequalities in health care use and less strongly with inequalities in common risk factors for disease such as smoking. Methods Cause-specific mortality data for people aged 30–74 years were obtained for 14 countries, and were analysed by calculating age-standardized mortality rates and relative risks comparing a lower with a higher educational group. Survey data on health care use and behavioural risk factors for people aged 30–74 years were obtained for 12 countries, and were analysed by calculating age-and sex-adjusted odds ratios comparing a low with a higher educational group. Patterns of association were explored by calculating correlation coefficients. Results In most countries and for most amenable causes of death substantial inequalities in mortality were observed, but inequalities in mortality from amenable causes did not vary between countries in patterns that are different from those seen for inequalities in non-amenable mortality. As compared to non-amenable causes, inequalities in mortality from amenable causes are not more strongly associated with inequalities in health care use. Inequalities in mortality from amenable causes are also not less strongly associated with common risk factors such as smoking. Conclusions We did not find evidence that inequalities in

  15. Trends in socioeconomic inequalities in cancer mortality in Barcelona: 1992–2003

    PubMed Central

    Puigpinós, Rosa; Borrell, Carme; Antunes, José Leopoldo Ferreira; Azlor, Enric; Pasarín, M Isabel; Serral, Gemma; Pons-Vigués, Mariona; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica; Fernández, Esteve

    2009-01-01

    Background The objective of this study was to assess trends in cancer mortality by educational level in Barcelona from 1992 to 2003. Methods The study population comprised Barcelona inhabitants aged 20 years or older. Data on cancer deaths were supplied by the system of information on mortality. Educational level was obtained from the municipal census. Age-standardized rates by educational level were calculated. We also fitted Poisson regression models to estimate the relative index of inequality (RII) and the Slope Index of Inequalities (SII). All were calculated for each sex and period (1992–1994, 1995–1997, 1998–2000, and 2001–2003). Results Cancer mortality was higher in men and women with lower educational level throughout the study period. Less-schooled men had higher mortality by stomach, mouth and pharynx, oesophagus, larynx and lung cancer. In women, there were educational inequalities for cervix uteri, liver and colon cancer. Inequalities of overall and specific types of cancer mortality remained stable in Barcelona; although a slight reduction was observed for some cancers. Conclusion This study has identified those cancer types presenting the greatest inequalities between men and women in recent years and shown that in Barcelona there is a stable trend in inequalities in the burden of cancer. PMID:19166582

  16. Trends and determinants of inequities in childhood stunting in Bangladesh from 1996/7 to 2014.

    PubMed

    Rabbani, Atonu; Khan, Akib; Yusuf, Sifat; Adams, Alayne

    2016-11-16

    We explore long-term trends and determinants of socioeconomic inequities in chronic childhood undernutrition measured by stunting among under-five children in Bangladesh. Given that one in three children remain stunted in Bangladesh, the socioeconomic mapping of stunting prevalence may be critical in designing public policies and interventions to eradicate childhood undernutrition. Six rounds of Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey data are utilized, spanning the period 1996/97 to 2014. Using recognized measures of absolute and relative inequality (namely, absolute and relative difference, concentration curve and index), we quantify trends, and decompose changes in the concentration index to identify factors that best explain observed dynamics. Despite remarkable improvements in average nutritional status over the last two decades, socio-economic inequalities have persisted, and according to some measures, even worsened. For example, expressed as rate-ratios, the relative inequality in under-five stunting increased by 56% and the concentration index more than doubled between 1996/97 and 2014. Decomposition analyses find that wealth and maternal factors such as mothers' schooling and short stature are major contributors to observed socio-economic inequalities in child undernutrition and their changes over time. Reflecting on recent success around socioeconomic and gender equity in child mortality, and the weak legacy of nutrition policy in Bangladesh, we suggest that nutrition programming energies be focused specifically on the most disadvantaged and applied at scale to close socioeconomic gaps in stunting prevalence.

  17. Elements of Inequity in Illinois School Finance.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lows, Raymond L.

    1985-01-01

    Data concerning state-local systems of financing public education in Illinois reveal inequities across districts of different types as well as between districts of the same type. The procedure should be of value in appraising school finance inequities in states with diverse patterns of school district organization. (MLF)

  18. Not just smoking and high-tech medicine: socioeconomic inequities in US mortality rates, overall and by race/ethnicity, 1960–2006

    PubMed Central

    Krieger, Nancy; Chen, Jarvis T.; Kosheleva, Anna; Waterman, Pamela D.

    2011-01-01

    Recent research on the post-1980 widening of US socioeconomic mortality inequalities has emphasized the contribution of smoking and high-tech medicine, with some studies treating the growing inequalities as effectively inevitable. No studies, however, have analyzed long-term trends in US mortality rates and inequities unrelated to smoking or due to lack of basic medical care, even as a handful have shown that US socioeconomic inequalities in overall mortality shrank between the mid-1960s and 1980. We accordingly analyzed US mortality data for 1960–2006, stratified by county income quintile and race/ethnicity, for mortality unrelated to smoking and preventable by 1960s standards of medical care. Key findings were that relative and absolute socioeconomic inequalities in US mortality unrelated to smoking and preventable by 1960s medical care standards shrank between the 1960s and 1980 and then increased and stagnated, with absolute rates on par with several leading causes of death, and with the burden worst for US populations of color. None of these findings can be attributed to trends in smoking-related deaths and access to high-tech medicine, and they also demonstrate that socioeconomic inequities in mortality can shrink and need not inevitably rise. PMID:22611656

  19. Widening inequalities in self-rated health by material deprivation? A trend analysis between 2001 and 2011 in Germany.

    PubMed

    Pförtner, Timo-Kolja; Elgar, Frank J

    2016-01-01

    Research on inequalities in health has shown a strong association between the lack of standard of living (defined as material deprivation) and self-rated health (SRH). In this study, we sought to further examine this association in a trend analysis of relative and absolute inequalities in SRH as defined by material deprivation in Germany. Data were obtained from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) between 2001 and 2011. Material deprivation was measured on the basis of 11 living standard items missing due to financial reasons. We used the relative index of inequality (RII) and slope index of inequality (SII) to measure inequalities in SRH by material deprivation, calculating pooled interval logistic regression with robust SEs. Stepwise models were estimated, including demographic and socioeconomic variables, to assess their inter-relation with inequalities in SRH by material deprivation. The results showed a steady increase in poor SRH over the 10-year duration of the study. A quadratic (inverted U-shaped) trend was observed in material deprivation in the standards of living, which rose from 2001 to 2005, and then declined in 2011. A similar but non-significant trend was found in relative and absolute inequalities in SRH by material deprivation, which increased from 2001 to 2005 and then declined. Inequality in SRH by material deprivation was relatively stable; however, an observed quadratic trend coincided with active and passive labour market reforms in Germany in early 2005. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

  20. Trends in Global Gender Inequality (Forthcoming, Social Forces).

    PubMed

    Dorius, Shawn F; Firebaugh, Glenn

    2010-07-01

    This study investigates trends in gender inequality for the world as a whole. Using data encompassing a large majority of the world's population, we examine world trends over recent decades for key indicators of gender inequality in education, mortality, political representation, and economic activity. We find that gender inequality is declining in virtually all major domains, that the decline is occurring across diverse religious and cultural traditions, and that population growth is slowing the decline because populations are growing faster in countries where there is the greatest gender inequality.

  1. Trends in Global Gender Inequality (Forthcoming, Social Forces)

    PubMed Central

    Dorius, Shawn F.; Firebaugh, Glenn

    2011-01-01

    This study investigates trends in gender inequality for the world as a whole. Using data encompassing a large majority of the world’s population, we examine world trends over recent decades for key indicators of gender inequality in education, mortality, political representation, and economic activity. We find that gender inequality is declining in virtually all major domains, that the decline is occurring across diverse religious and cultural traditions, and that population growth is slowing the decline because populations are growing faster in countries where there is the greatest gender inequality. PMID:21643494

  2. Labor force participation and secondary education of gender inequality index (GII) associated with healthy life expectancy (HLE) at birth.

    PubMed

    Kim, Jong In; Kim, Gukbin

    2014-11-18

    What is the factor that affects healthy life expectancy? Healthy life expectancy (HLE) at birth may be influenced by components of the gender inequality index (GII). Notably, this claim is not tested on the between components of the GII, such as population at least secondary education (PLSE) with ages 25 and older, labor force participation rate (LFPR) with ages 15 and older, and the HLE in the world's countries. Thus, this study estimates the associations between the PLSE, LFPR of components of the GII and the HLE. The data for the analysis of HLE in 148 countries were obtained from the World Health Organization. Information regarding the GII indicators for this study was obtained from the United Nations database. Associations between these factors and HLE were assessed using Pearson correlation coefficients and regression models. Although significant negative correlations were found between HLE and the LFPR, positive correlations were found between HLE and PLSE. Finally, the HLE predictors were used to form a model of the components of the GII, with higher PLSE as secondary education and lower LFPR as labor force (R(2) = 0.552, P <0.001). Gender inequality of the attainment secondary education and labor force participation seems to have an important latent effect on healthy life expectancy at birth. Therefore, in populations with high HLE, the gender inequalities in HLE are smaller because of a combination of a larger secondary education advantage and a smaller labor force disadvantage in male-females.

  3. Explaining socioeconomic inequalities in exclusive breast feeding in Norway.

    PubMed

    Bærug, Anne; Laake, Petter; Løland, Beate Fossum; Tylleskär, Thorkild; Tufte, Elisabeth; Fretheim, Atle

    2017-08-01

    In high-income countries, lower socioeconomic position is associated with lower rates of breast feeding, but it is unclear what factors explain this inequality. Our objective was to examine the association between socioeconomic position and exclusive breast feeding, and to explore whether socioeconomic inequality in exclusive breast feeding could be explained by other sociodemographic characteristics, for example, maternal age and parity, smoking habits, birth characteristics, quality of counselling and breastfeeding difficulties. We used data from a questionnaire sent to mothers when their infants were five completed months as part of a trial of a breastfeeding intervention in Norway. We used maternal education as an indicator of socioeconomic position. Analyses of 1598 mother-infant pairs were conducted using logistic regression to assess explanatory factors of educational inequalities in breast feeding. Socioeconomic inequalities in exclusive breast feeding were present from the beginning and persisted for five completed months, when 22% of the most educated mothers exclusively breast fed compared with 7% of the least educated mothers: OR 3.39 (95% CI 1.74 to 6.61). After adjustment for all potentially explanatory factors, the OR was reduced to 1.49 (95% CI 0.70 to 3.14). This decrease in educational inequality seemed to be mainly driven by sociodemographic factors, smoking habits and breastfeeding difficulties, in particular perceived milk insufficiency. Socioeconomic inequalities in exclusive breast feeding at 5 months were largely explained by sociodemographic factors, but also by modifiable factors, such as smoking habits and breastfeeding difficulties, which can be amenable to public health interventions. NCT01025362. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  4. Freeing up Teachers to Learn: A Case Study of Teacher Autonomy as a Tool for Reducing Educational Inequalities in a Montessori School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Steiner, Martyn

    2016-01-01

    A major factor influencing the potential for schools to address inequalities is the freedom that teachers have to reflect and to act to address those inequalities. This article describes how an education system that emphasises the informal and qualitative can leave greater room for teachers to develop themselves and to focus on the direct task of…

  5. Widening socioeconomic inequalities in Australian suicide, despite recent declines in suicide rates.

    PubMed

    Too, Lay San; Law, Phillip C F; Spittal, Matthew J; Page, Andrew; Milner, Allison

    2018-04-30

    This study aims to investigate trends in socioeconomic inequalities of suicide from 1979 to 2013 for Australian males and females aged 15-34 years and 35-64 years. Data on suicides and population were obtained from national registries. An area-based measure of socioeconomic status (SES) was used, and categorized into low, middle, and high SES areas. Suicide rates for each SES groups were estimated using a negative binomial regression model, adjusted for confounders. Socioeconomic inequalities in suicide were assessed using absolute and relative risk of low-to-high SES areas. Secular changes in socioeconomic inequalities were assessed using trend tests for relative risk. For young males, there was an increase in socioeconomic inequality driven by a significant decrease in suicide rates in high SES areas. For older males, inequality in suicide increased by 29%, which was related to a marked increase in suicide rates in low SES areas. Inequalities in both young and older female suicides also increased. These increases occurred when corresponding suicide rates in high SES areas decreased. Recent widening socioeconomic inequalities in Australian suicide have been primarily associated with declines in suicide rates in high SES areas. However, an increasing inequality in older male suicide is linked with low SES. Efforts targeting people from poor areas, especially older males, should be considered when developing suicide prevention strategy.

  6. Inequality in Academic Performance and Juvenile Convictions: An Area-Based Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sabates, Ricardo; Feinstein, Leon; Shingal, Anirudh

    2011-01-01

    This paper focuses on the links between inequality in academic performance and juvenile conviction rates for violent crime, stealing from another person, burglary in a dwelling and racially motivated offences. We use area-based aggregate data to model this relationship. Our results show that, above and beyond impacts of absolute access to…

  7. Prevalence of visual impairment in El Salvador: inequalities in educational level and occupational status.

    PubMed

    Rius, Anna; Guisasola, Laura; Sabidó, Meritxell; Leasher, Janet L; Moriña, David; Villalobos, Astrid; Lansingh, Van C; Mujica, Oscar J; Rivera-Handal, José Eduardo; Silva, Juan Casrlos

    2014-11-01

    To examine the prevalence of blindness, visual impairment, and related eye diseases and conditions among adults in El Salvador, and to explore socioeconomic inequalities in their prevalence by education level and occupational status, stratified by sex. Based upon the Rapid Assessment of Avoidable Blindness (RAAB) methodology, this nationwide sample comprised 3 800 participants (3 399 examined) ≥ 50 years old from 76 randomly selected clusters of 50 persons each. The prevalence of blindness, visual impairment and related eye diseases and conditions, including uncorrected refractive error (URE), was calculated for categories of education level and occupational status. Multiple logistic regression models were fitted to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and stratified by sex. Age-adjusted prevalence was 2.4% (95% CI: 2.2-2.6) for blindness (men: 2.8% (95% CI: 2.5-3.1); women: 2.2% (95% CI: 1.9-2.5)) and 11.8% (95% CI: 11.6-12.0) for moderate visual impairment (men: 10.8% (95% CI: 10.5-11.1); women: 12.6% (95% CI: 12.4-12.8)). The proportion of visual impairment due to cataract was 43.8% in men and 33.5% in women. Inverse gradients of socioeconomic inequalities were observed in the prevalence of visual impairment. For example, the age-adjusted OR (AOR) was 3.4 (95% CI: 2.0-6.4) for visual impairment and 4.3 (95% CI: 2.1-10.4) for related URE in illiterate women compared to those with secondary education, and 1.9 (95% CI: 1.1-3.1) in cataract in unemployed men. Blindness and visual impairment prevalence is high in the El Salvador adult population. The main associated conditions are cataract and URE, two treatable conditions. As socioeconomic and gender inequalities in ocular health may herald discrimination and important barriers to accessing affordable, good-quality, and timely health care services, prioritization of public eye health care and disability policies should be put in place, particularly among women, the unemployed, and

  8. Assessing levels and trends of child health inequality in 88 developing countries: from 2000 to 2014

    PubMed Central

    Li, Zhihui; Li, Mingqiang; Subramanian, S. V.; Lu, Chunling

    2017-01-01

    ABSTRACT Background: Reducing child mortality was one of the Millennium Development Goals. In the current Sustainable Development Goals era, achieving equity is prioritized as a major aim. Objective: This study aims to provide a comprehensive and updated picture of inequalities in child health intervention coverage and child health outcomes by wealth status, as well as their trends between 2000 and 2014. Methods: Using data from Demographic Health Surveys and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, we adopted three measures of inequality, including one absolute inequality indicator and two relative inequality indicators, to estimate the level and trends of inequalities in three child health outcome variables and 17 intervention coverages in 88 developing countries. Results: While improvements in child health outcomes and coverage of interventions have been observed between 2000 and 2014, large inequalities remain. There was a high level of variation between countries’ progress toward reducing child health inequalities, with some countries significantly improving, some deteriorating, and some remaining statistically unchanged. Among child health interventions, the least equitable one was access to improved sanitation (The absolute difference in coverages between the richest quintile and the poorest quintile reached 49.5% [42.7, 56.2]), followed by access to improved water (34.1% [29.5, 38.6]), and skilled birth attendant (SBA) (34.1% [28.8, 39.4]). The most equitable intervention coverage was insecticide-treated bed net for children (1.0% [−3.9, 5.9]), followed by oral rehydration therapy for diarrhea ((8.0% [5.2, 10.8]), and vitamin A supplement (8.4% [5.1, 11.7]). These findings were robust to various inequality measurements. Conclusions: Although child health outcomes and coverage of interventions have improved largely over the study period for almost all wealth quintiles, insufficient progress was made in reducing child health inequalities between the poorest

  9. Healthcare investment and income inequality.

    PubMed

    Bhattacharjee, Ayona; Shin, Jong Kook; Subramanian, Chetan; Swaminathan, Shailender

    2017-12-01

    This paper examines how the relative shares of public and private health expenditures impact income inequality. We study a two period overlapping generation's growth model in which longevity is determined by both private and public health expenditure and human capital is the engine of growth. Increased investment in health, reduces mortality, raises return to education and affects income inequality. In such a framework we show that the cross-section earnings inequality is non-decreasing in the private share of health expenditure. We test this prediction empirically using a variable that proxies for the relative intensity of investments (private versus public) using vaccination data from the National Sample Survey Organization for 76 regions in India in the year 1986-87. We link this with region-specific expenditure inequality data for the period 1987-2012. Our empirical findings, though focused on a specific health investment (vaccines), suggest that an increase in the share of the privately provided health care results in higher inequality. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Wealth, education and urban-rural inequality and maternal healthcare service usage in Malawi.

    PubMed

    Yaya, Sanni; Bishwajit, Ghose; Shah, Vaibhav

    2016-01-01

    Malawi is among the 5 sub-Saharan African countries presenting with very high maternal mortality rates, which remain a challenge. This study aims to examine the impact of wealth inequality and area of residence (urban vs rural) and education on selected indicators of maternal healthcare services (MHS) usage in Malawi. This study was based on data from the 5th round of Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) conducted in 2013-2014 in Malawi. Study participants were 7572 mothers aged between 15 and 49 years. The outcome variable was usage status of maternal health services of the following types: antenatal care, skilled delivery assistance and postpartum care. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate methods were used to describe the pattern of MHS usage in the sample population. Association between household wealth status, education as well as the type of residence, whether urban or rural, as independent variables and usage of MHS as dependent variables were analysed using the generalised estimating equations (GEE) method. Mean age of the sample population was 26.88 (SD 6.68). Regarding the usage of MHS, 44.7% of women had at least 4 ANC visits, 87.8% used skilled delivery attendants and 82.2% of women had used postnatal care. Regarding the wealth index, about a quarter of the women were in the poorest wealth quintile (23.6%) while about 1/6 were in the highest wealth quintile (15%). Rate of usage for all 3 types of services was lowest among women belonging to the lowest wealth quintile. In terms of education, only 1/5 completed their secondary or a higher degree (20.1%) and nearly 1/10 of the population lives in urban areas (11.4%) whereas the remaining majority live in rural areas (88.6%). The rates of usage of MHS, although reasonable on an overall basis, were consistently lower in women with lower education and those residing in rural areas. Maternal health service usage in Malawi appears to be reasonable, yet the high maternal mortality rate is disturbing and

  11. Early Childhood Education and Care in a Context of Social Heterogeneity and Inequality. Empirical Notes on an Interdisciplinary Challenge

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schoyerer, Gabriel; van Santen, Eric

    2016-01-01

    Against a background of increasing inequality and its impact at various levels on childhood and family life, of the growing societal significance and uptake of extra-familial childcare provision, and of social policy goals emphasising participation and education for all, the early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector in Germany is facing new…

  12. How Pronounced Is Income Inequality around the World--and How Can Education Help Reduce It? Education Indicators in Focus. No. 4

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    OECD Publishing (NJ1), 2012

    2012-01-01

    How pronounced is income inequality around the world--and how can education help reduce it? This paper reports the following: (1) Across OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries, the average income of the richest 10% of the population was about nine times that of the poorest 10% before the onset of the global economic…

  13. Inequality of Higher Education in China: An Empirical Test Based on the Perspective of Relative Deprivation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hou, Liming

    2014-01-01

    The primary goal of this paper is to examine what makes Chinese college students dissatisfied with entrance opportunities for higher education. Based on the author's survey data, we test two parameters which could be a potential cause of this dissatisfaction: 1) distributive inequality, which emphasizes the individual's dissatisfaction caused by…

  14. [Social inequality in home care].

    PubMed

    Möller, A; Osterfeld, A; Büscher, A

    2013-06-01

    Social inequality in Germany is discussed primarily with regard to educational or social welfare issues. There is a political consensus that more action should be taken to ensure equality of chances and fulfillment of basic needs for everyone. In long-term care these considerations have not yet taken place and there are hardly any research studies in this field. However, the startling rise of the need for long-term care will definitely require a discussion of social inequality in various care arrangements. To learn more about social inequality in home care, a qualitative approach was used and 16 home care nurses were interviewed. Our study shows that many care recipients face numerous problems they cannot handle on their own, which may even worsen their situation. In addition, the results reveal that facing social inequalities place a burden on nurses and influence their work performance.

  15. The Politics of Languages in Education: Issues of Access, Social Participation and Inequality in the Multilingual Context of Pakistan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tamim, Tayyaba

    2014-01-01

    This paper, based on some findings of a wider three-year study, sets forth the issue of languages used and taught in education as a dimension of inequality and highlights its implications for widening participation and access in the multilingual context of Pakistan. The paper takes secondary education in private and government schools in Pakistan…

  16. How Culture Affects Female Inequality across Countries: An Empirical Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cheung, Hoi Yan; Chan, Alex W. H.

    2007-01-01

    Many studies have commented that culture has an influence on gender inequality. However, few studies have provided data that could be used to investigate how culture actually influences female inequality. One of the aims of this study is to investigate whether Hofstede's cultural dimensions have an impact on female inequality in education in terms…

  17. Effects of Simulated Interventions to Improve School Entry Academic Skills on Socioeconomic Inequalities in Educational Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chittleborough, Catherine R.; Mittinty, Murthy N.; Lawlor, Debbie A.; Lynch, John W.

    2014-01-01

    Randomized controlled trial evidence shows that interventions before age 5 can improve skills necessary for educational success; the effect of these interventions on socioeconomic inequalities is unknown. Using trial effect estimates, and marginal structural models with data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (n = 11,764,…

  18. Rural-Urban Dimensions of Inequality Change. Working Papers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Eastwood, Robert; Lipton, Michael

    This study reviews evidence that overall within-country inequality, although showing no trends from 1960-80, increased after 1980-85, focusing on developing and transitional countries. It explores trends in rural-urban, intrarural, and intraurban inequality of income, poverty risk, health, and education, and the offsetting trends in inequality…

  19. How a universal health system reduces inequalities: lessons from England

    PubMed Central

    Ali, Shehzad; Doran, Tim; Ferguson, Brian; Fleetcroft, Robert; Goddard, Maria; Goldblatt, Peter; Laudicella, Mauro; Raine, Rosalind; Cookson, Richard

    2016-01-01

    Background Provision of universal coverage is essential for achieving equity in healthcare, but inequalities still exist in universal healthcare systems. Between 2004/2005 and 2011/2012, the National Health Service (NHS) in England, which has provided universal coverage since 1948, made sustained efforts to reduce health inequalities by strengthening primary care. We provide the first comprehensive assessment of trends in socioeconomic inequalities of primary care access, quality and outcomes during this period. Methods Whole-population small area longitudinal study based on 32 482 neighbourhoods of approximately 1500 people in England from 2004/2005 to 2011/2012. We measured slope indices of inequality in four indicators: (1) patients per family doctor, (2) primary care quality, (3) preventable emergency hospital admissions and (4) mortality from conditions considered amenable to healthcare. Results Between 2004/2005 and 2011/2012, there were larger absolute improvements on all indicators in more-deprived neighbourhoods. The modelled gap between the most-deprived and least-deprived neighbourhoods in England decreased by: 193 patients per family doctor (95% CI 173 to 213), 3.29 percentage points of primary care quality (3.13 to 3.45), 0.42 preventable hospitalisations per 1000 people (0.29 to 0.55) and 0.23 amenable deaths per 1000 people (0.15 to 0.31). By 2011/2012, inequalities in primary care supply and quality were almost eliminated, but socioeconomic inequality was still associated with 158 396 preventable hospitalisations and 37 983 deaths amenable to healthcare. Conclusions Between 2004/2005 and 2011/2012, the NHS succeeded in substantially reducing socioeconomic inequalities in primary care access and quality, but made only modest reductions in healthcare outcome inequalities. PMID:26787198

  20. Socioeconomic inequality and its determinants regarding infant mortality in iran.

    PubMed

    Damghanian, Maryam; Shariati, Mohammad; Mirzaiinajmabadi, Khadigeh; Yunesian, Masud; Emamian, Mohammad Hassan

    2014-06-01

    Infant mortality rate is a useful indicator of health conditions in the society, the racial and socioeconomic inequality of which is from the most important measures of social inequality. The aim of this study was to determine the socioeconomic inequality and its determinants regarding infant mortality in an Iranian population. This cross-sectional study was performed on 3794 children born during 2010-2011 in Shahroud, Iran. Based on children's addresses and phone numbers, 3412 were available and finally 3297 participated in the study. A data collection form was filled out through interviewing the mothers as well as using health records. Using principal component analysis, the study population was divided to high and low socioeconomic groups based on the case's home asset, education and job of the household's head, marital status, and composition of the household members. Inequality between the groups with regard to infant mortality was investigated by Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition method. The mortality rate was 15.1 per 1000 live births in the high socioeconomic group and 42.3 per 1000 in the low socioeconomic group. Mother's education, consanguinity of parents, and infant's nutrition type and birth weight constituted 44% of the gap contributing factors. Child's gender, high-risk pregnancy, and living area had no impact on the gap. There was considerable socioeconomic inequality regarding infant mortality in Shahroud. Mother's education was the most contributing factor in this inequality.

  1. Optimal Financial Knowledge and Wealth Inequality*

    PubMed Central

    Lusardi, Annamaria; Michaud, Pierre-Carl; Mitchell, Olivia S.

    2017-01-01

    We show that financial knowledge is a key determinant of wealth inequality in a stochastic lifecycle model with endogenous financial knowledge accumulation, where financial knowledge enables individuals to better allocate lifetime resources in a world of uncertainty and imperfect insurance. Moreover, because of how the U.S. social insurance system works, better-educated individuals have most to gain from investing in financial knowledge. Our parsimonious specification generates substantial wealth inequality relative to a one-asset saving model and one where returns on wealth depend on portfolio composition alone. We estimate that 30–40 percent of retirement wealth inequality is accounted for by financial knowledge. PMID:28555088

  2. Do free caesarean section policies increase inequalities in Benin and Mali?

    PubMed

    Ravit, Marion; Audibert, Martine; Ridde, Valéry; De Loenzien, Myriam; Schantz, Clémence; Dumont, Alexandre

    2018-06-05

    Benin and Mali introduced user fee exemption policies focused on caesarean sections (C-sections) in 2005 and 2009, respectively. These policies had a positive impact on access to C-sections and facility based deliveries among all women, but the impact on socioeconomic inequality is still highly uncertain. The objective of this study was to observe whether there was an increase or a decrease in urban/rural and socioeconomic inequalities in access to C-sections and facility based deliveries after the free C-section policy was introduced. We used data from three consecutive Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS): 2001, 2006 and 2011-2012 in Benin and 2001, 2006 and 2012-13 in Mali. We evaluated trends in inequality in terms of two outcomes: C-sections and facility based deliveries. Adjusted odds ratios were used to estimate whether the distributions of C-sections and facility based deliveries favoured the least advantaged categories (rural, non-educated and poorest women) or the most advantaged categories (urban, educated and richest women). Concentration curves were used to observe the degree of wealth-related inequality in access to C-sections and facility based deliveries. We analysed 47,302 childbirths (23,266 in Benin and 24,036 in Mali). In Benin, we found no significant difference in access to C-sections between urban and rural women or between educated and non-educated women. However, the richest women had greater access to C-sections than the poorest women. There was no significant change in these inequalities in terms of access to C-sections and facility based deliveries after introduction of the free C-section policy. In Mali, we found a reduction in education-related inequalities in access to C-sections after implementation of the policy (p-value = 0.043). Inequalities between urban and rural areas had already decreased prior to implementation of the policy, but wealth-related inequalities were still present. Urban/rural and socioeconomic inequalities in

  3. Socioeconomic Inequalities Persist Despite Declining Stunting Prevalence in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

    PubMed

    da Silva, Inácio Crochemore M; França, Giovanny V; Barros, Aluisio J D; Amouzou, Agbessi; Krasevec, Julia; Victora, Cesar G

    2018-02-01

    Global stunting prevalence has been nearly halved between 1990 and 2016, but it remains unclear whether this decline has benefited poor and rural populations within low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). We assessed time trends in stunting among children <5 y of age (under-5) according to household wealth and place of residence in 67 LMICs. Stunting prevalence was analyzed in 217 nationally representative Demographic and Health Surveys and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys from 67 countries with ≥2 surveys between 1993 and 2014. National estimates were stratified by wealth and area of residence, comparing the poorest 40% with the wealthiest 60%, and those residing in urban and rural areas. Time trends were calculated for LMICs by using multilevel regression models weighted by under-5 population, with stratification by wealth and by residence. Trends in absolute (slope index of inequality; SII) and relative (concentration index; CIX) inequalities were calculated. Mean prevalences in 1993 were 53.7% in low-income and 48.2% in middle-income countries, with annual average linear declines of 0.76 and 0.72 percentage points (pp), respectively. Although similar slopes of declines were observed for the poorest 40% and wealthiest 60% groups in all countries (0.78 and 0.74 pp, respectively), absolute and relative inequalities increased over time in low-income countries (SII increased from -19.3% in 1993 to -23.7% in 2014 and CIX increased from -6.2% to -10.8% in the same period). In middle-income countries, socioeconomic inequalities remained stable. Overall, stunting prevalence decreased more rapidly among rural than for urban children (0.78 and 0.55 pp, respectively). The prevalence of stunting is decreasing. Poor-rich gaps are stable in middle-income countries and slightly increasing in low-income countries. Rural-urban inequalities are decreasing over time.

  4. Gender Based Within-Household Inequality in Childhood Immunization in India: Changes over Time and across Regions

    PubMed Central

    Singh, Ashish

    2012-01-01

    Background and Objectives Despite India's substantial economic growth in the past two decades, girls in India are discriminated against in access to preventive healthcare including immunizations. Surprisingly, no study has assessed the contribution of gender based within-household discrimination to the overall inequality in immunization status of Indian children. This study therefore has two objectives: to estimate the gender based within-household inequality (GWHI) in immunization status of Indian children and to examine the inter-regional and inter-temporal variations in the GWHI. Data and Methods The present study used households with a pair of male-female siblings (aged 1–5 years) from two rounds of National Family Health Survey (NFHS, 1992–93 and 2005–06). The overall inequality in the immunization status (after controlling for age and birth order) of children was decomposed into within-households and between-households components using Mean log deviation to obtain the GWHI component. The analysis was conducted at the all-India level as well as for six specified geographical regions and at two time points (1992–93 and 2005–06). Household fixed-effects models for immunization status of children were also estimated. Results and Conclusions Findings from household fixed effects analysis indicated that the immunization scores of girls were significantly lower than that of boys. The inequality decompositions revealed that, at the all-India level, the absolute level of GWHI in immunization status decreased from 0.035 in 1992–93 to 0.023 in 2005–06. However, as a percentage of total inequality, it increased marginally (15.5% to 16.5%). In absolute terms, GWHI decreased in all the regions except in the North-East. But, as a percentage of total inequality it increased in the North-Eastern, Western and Southern regions. The main conclusions are the following: GWHI contributes substantially to the overall inequality in immunization status of Indian children

  5. Gender based within-household inequality in childhood immunization in India: changes over time and across regions.

    PubMed

    Singh, Ashish

    2012-01-01

    Despite India's substantial economic growth in the past two decades, girls in India are discriminated against in access to preventive healthcare including immunizations. Surprisingly, no study has assessed the contribution of gender based within-household discrimination to the overall inequality in immunization status of Indian children. This study therefore has two objectives: to estimate the gender based within-household inequality (GWHI) in immunization status of Indian children and to examine the inter-regional and inter-temporal variations in the GWHI. The present study used households with a pair of male-female siblings (aged 1-5 years) from two rounds of National Family Health Survey (NFHS, 1992-93 and 2005-06). The overall inequality in the immunization status (after controlling for age and birth order) of children was decomposed into within-households and between-households components using Mean log deviation to obtain the GWHI component. The analysis was conducted at the all-India level as well as for six specified geographical regions and at two time points (1992-93 and 2005-06). Household fixed-effects models for immunization status of children were also estimated. Findings from household fixed effects analysis indicated that the immunization scores of girls were significantly lower than that of boys. The inequality decompositions revealed that, at the all-India level, the absolute level of GWHI in immunization status decreased from 0.035 in 1992-93 to 0.023 in 2005-06. However, as a percentage of total inequality, it increased marginally (15.5% to 16.5%). In absolute terms, GWHI decreased in all the regions except in the North-East. But, as a percentage of total inequality it increased in the North-Eastern, Western and Southern regions. The main conclusions are the following: GWHI contributes substantially to the overall inequality in immunization status of Indian children; and though the overall inequality in immunization status declined in all the

  6. A Multimodal Intervention for Children with ADHD Reduces Inequity in Health and Education Outcomes

    PubMed Central

    Enns, Jennifer E.; Randall, Jason R.; Chateau, Dan; Taylor, Carole; Brownell, Marni; Bolton, James M.; Burland, Elaine; Katz, Alan; Katz, Laurence Y.; Nickel, Nathan C.

    2017-01-01

    Objective: To evaluate whether a multimodal intervention for children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) resulted in better long-term health and education outcomes and reduced inequity across the socioeconomic gradient. Method: We analyzed administrative data held in the Manitoba Population Research Data Repository describing recipients of a combined pharmacological/behavioural intervention for ADHD. The study cohort included children aged 5 to 17 years who visited the Manitoba Adolescent Treatment Centre’s ADHD intervention service at least 3 times (2007-2012). Controls were matched on age, sex, year of ADHD diagnosis, and income quintile. We compared rates of hospital and emergency department visits, medication use and adherence, contact with child welfare services, and whether children were in their age-appropriate grade. We used concentration curves to estimate differences in outcomes between children from high- and low-income families. Results: Children who received the intervention (n = 485) had higher rates of medication use (rate ratio [RR], 1.21; 95% CI, 1.08 to 1.36) and adherence (RR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.03 to 1.96) and were more likely to be in their age-appropriate grade (RR, 1.33; 95% CI, 1.09 to 1.63) compared with controls (n = 1884). The intervention was also associated with reduced inequity in these outcomes across income deciles. There was no difference in the rates of hospital or emergency department visits or contacts with child welfare services. Conclusions: A multimodal ADHD intervention was associated with increased medication use and adherence and higher academic achievement. It was also related to lower inequity across the socioeconomic gradient. These results suggest that multimodal approaches may provide more equitable health and education outcomes for children with ADHD. PMID:28146649

  7. Diversification of Educational Provision and School-to-Work Transitions in Rural Mali: Analysing a Reconfiguration of Inequalities in Light of Justice Theories

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Weyer, Frederique

    2011-01-01

    Based on an approach focusing on actors and in particular on educational trajectories, this paper analyses the effects of diversification of educational provision on inequalities in rural Mali. It shows that there are considerable gaps in the skills acquired by students, including within formal education. These gaps are perceived as illegitimate…

  8. Welfare state retrenchment and increasing mental health inequality by educational credentials in Finland: a multicohort study

    PubMed Central

    Kokkinen, Lauri; Muntaner, Carles; Kouvonen, Anne; Koskinen, Aki; Varje, Pekka; Väänänen, Ari

    2015-01-01

    Objectives Epidemiological studies have shown an association between educational credentials and mental disorders, but have not offered any explanation for the varying strength of this association in different historical contexts. In this study, we investigate the education-specific trends in hospitalisation due to psychiatric disorders in Finnish working-age men and women between 1976 and 2010, and offer a welfare state explanation for the secular trends found. Setting Population-based setting with a 25% random sample of the population aged 30–65 years in 7 independent consecutive cohorts (1976–1980, 1981–1985, 1986–1990, 1991–1995, 1996–2000, 2001–2005, 2006–2010). Participants Participants were randomly selected from the Statistics Finland population database (n=2 865 746). These data were linked to diagnosis-specific records on hospitalisations, drawn from the National Hospital Discharge Registry using personal identification numbers. Employment rates by educational credentials were drawn from the Statistics Finland employment database. Primary and secondary outcome measures Hospitalisation and employment. Results We found an increasing trend in psychiatric hospitalisation rates among the population with only an elementary school education, and a decreasing trend in those with higher educational credentials. The employment rate of the population with only an elementary school education decreased more than that of those with higher educational credentials. Conclusions We propose that restricted employment opportunities are the main mechanism behind the increased educational inequality in hospitalisation for psychiatric disorders, while several secondary mechanisms (lack of outpatient healthcare services, welfare cuts, decreased alcohol duty) further accelerated the diverging long-term trends. All of these inequality-increasing mechanisms were activated by welfare state retrenchment, which included the liberalisation of financial markets and

  9. Towards a Theoretical Framework for the Comparative Understanding of Globalisation, Higher Education, the Labour Market and Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kupfer, Antonia

    2011-01-01

    This paper is a theoretical examination of three major empirical trends that affect many people: globalisation, increasingly close relations between higher education (HE) and labour markets, and increasing social inequality. Its aim is to identify key theoretical resources and their contribution to the development of a comparative theoretical…

  10. Social inequality in chronic disease outcomes.

    PubMed

    Nordahl, Helene

    2014-11-01

    Socioeconomic differences in morbidity and mortality, particularly across educational groups, are widening. Differential exposures to behavioural risk factors have been shown to play an important mediating role on the social inequality in chronic diseases such as heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung cancer. However, much less attention has been given to the potential role of interaction, where the same level of exposure to a behavioural risk factor has different effect across socioeconomic groups, creating subgroups that are more vulnerable than others. In this thesis, Paper 1 describes the unique cohort consortium which was established by pooling and harmonising prospective data from existing cohort studies in Denmark. This consortium generated a large study population with long follow-up sufficient to study power demanding questions of mechanisms underlying social inequalities in chronic disease outcomes. In Paper 2 on incidence of coronary heart disease, smoking and body mass index partially mediated the observed educational differences. This result suggested that some of the social inequality in coronary heart disease may be enhanced by differential exposure to behavioural risk factors (i.e. smoking and obesity). In Paper 3 on incidence of stroke, an observed interaction between education and smoking indicated that participants, particularly men, with low level of education may be more vulnerable to the effect of smoking than those with high level of education in terms of ischemic stroke. Finally, Paper 4 revealed that behavioural risk factors, primarily smoking, explained a considerable part of the educational differences in cause-specific mortality. Further, this paper added important knowledge about the considerable part of the mediated effect, which could be due to interaction between education and smoking. In conclusion, the research in this thesis is a practical implementation of contemporary statistical

  11. Educational inequalities in health behaviors at midlife: Is there a role for early-life cognition?

    PubMed Central

    Clouston, Sean; Richards, Marcus; Cadar, Dorina; Hofer, Scott

    2015-01-01

    Educational attainment is a fundamental cause of social inequalities in health because it influences the distribution of resources, including money, knowledge, power, prestige, and beneficial social connections that can be used in situ to influence health. However, recent studies have highlighted early-life cognition as commonly indicating the propensity for education and determining health and mortality. A primary causal mechanism through which education and adolescent cognition plausibly impact health is through the modification of health behaviors. We integrate analyses using the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, the National Survey of Health and Development, and the National Childhood Development Study to examine the role of adolescent cognition and education on smoking, heavy drinking, and physical inactivity at midlife. Results suggest that adolescent cognition is associated with the propensity for education, but that associations between cognition and health behaviors are attenuated by adjusting for education. In contrast, education was robustly associated with poor health behaviors. These results support the view that education is robustly associated with health behaviors. PMID:26315501

  12. The Association of Geographic Coordinates with Mortality in People with Lower and Higher Education and with Mortality Inequalities in Spain.

    PubMed

    Regidor, Enrique; Reques, Laura; Giráldez-García, Carolina; Miqueleiz, Estrella; Santos, Juana M; Martínez, David; de la Fuente, Luis

    2015-01-01

    Geographic patterns in total mortality and in mortality by cause of death are widely known to exist in many countries. However, the geographic pattern of inequalities in mortality within these countries is unknown. This study shows mathematically and graphically the geographic pattern of mortality inequalities by education in Spain. Data are from a nation-wide prospective study covering all persons living in Spain's 50 provinces in 2001. Individuals were classified in a cohort of subjects with low education and in another cohort of subjects with high education. Age- and sex-adjusted mortality rate from all causes and from leading causes of death in each cohort and mortality rate ratios in the low versus high education cohort were estimated by geographic coordinates and province. Latitude but not longitude was related to mortality. In subjects with low education, latitude had a U-shaped relation to mortality. In those with high education, mortality from all causes, and from cardiovascular, respiratory and digestive diseases decreased with increasing latitude, whereas cancer mortality increased. The mortality-rate ratio for all-cause death was 1.27 in the southern latitudes, 1.14 in the intermediate latitudes, and 1.20 in the northern latitudes. The mortality rate ratios for the leading causes of death were also higher in the lower and upper latitudes than in the intermediate latitudes. The geographic pattern of the mortality rate ratios is similar to that of the mortality rate in the low-education cohort: the highest magnitude is observed in the southern provinces, intermediate magnitudes in the provinces of the north and those of the Mediterranean east coast, and the lowest magnitude in the central provinces and those in the south of the Western Pyrenees. Mortality inequalities by education in Spain are higher in the south and north of the country and lower in the large region making up the central plateau. This geographic pattern is similar to that observed in

  13. Trends in health inequalities in 27 European countries.

    PubMed

    Mackenbach, Johan P; Valverde, José Rubio; Artnik, Barbara; Bopp, Matthias; Brønnum-Hansen, Henrik; Deboosere, Patrick; Kalediene, Ramune; Kovács, Katalin; Leinsalu, Mall; Martikainen, Pekka; Menvielle, Gwenn; Regidor, Enrique; Rychtaříková, Jitka; Rodriguez-Sanz, Maica; Vineis, Paolo; White, Chris; Wojtyniak, Bogdan; Hu, Yannan; Nusselder, Wilma J

    2018-06-19

    Unfavorable health trends among the lowly educated have recently been reported from the United States. We analyzed health trends by education in European countries, paying particular attention to the possibility of recent trend interruptions, including interruptions related to the impact of the 2008 financial crisis. We collected and harmonized data on mortality from ca 1980 to ca 2014 for 17 countries covering 9.8 million deaths and data on self-reported morbidity from ca 2002 to ca 2014 for 27 countries covering 350,000 survey respondents. We used interrupted time-series analyses to study changes over time and country-fixed effects analyses to study the impact of crisis-related economic conditions on health outcomes. Recent trends were more favorable than in previous decades, particularly in Eastern Europe, where mortality started to decline among lowly educated men and where the decline in less-than-good self-assessed health accelerated, resulting in some narrowing of health inequalities. In Western Europe, mortality has continued to decline among the lowly and highly educated, and although the decline of less-than-good self-assessed health slowed in countries severely hit by the financial crisis, this affected lowly and highly educated equally. Crisis-related economic conditions were not associated with widening health inequalities. Our results show that the unfavorable trends observed in the United States are not found in Europe. There has also been no discernible short-term impact of the crisis on health inequalities at the population level. Both findings suggest that European countries have been successful in avoiding an aggravation of health inequalities.

  14. Reducing Poverty, Not Inequality.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Feldstein, Martin

    1999-01-01

    Public policy should not focus on reducing inequality, but rather on reducing poverty. Explores three possible sources of poverty: unemployment, a lack of earnings ability, and individual choice. Discusses the role of education in relation to the lack of ability to earn. (SLD)

  15. Coverage and inequalities in maternal and child health interventions in Afghanistan.

    PubMed

    Akseer, Nadia; Bhatti, Zaid; Rizvi, Arjumand; Salehi, Ahmad S; Mashal, Taufiq; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A

    2016-09-12

    Afghanistan has made considerable gains in improving maternal and child health and survival since 2001. However, socioeconomic and regional inequities may pose a threat to reaching universal coverage of health interventions and further health progress. We explored coverage and socioeconomic inequalities in key life-saving reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health (RMNCH) interventions at the national level and by region in Afghanistan. We also assessed gains in child survival through scaling up effective community-based interventions across wealth groups. Using data from the Afghanistan Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2010/11, we explored 11 interventions that spanned all stages of the continuum of care, including indicators of composite coverage. Asset-based wealth quintiles were constructed using standardised methods, and absolute inequalities were explored using wealth quintile (Q) gaps (Q5-Q1) and the slope index of inequality (SII), while relative inequalities were assessed with ratios (Q5/Q1) and the concentration index (CIX). The lives saved tool (LiST) modeling used to estimate neonatal and post-neonatal deaths averted from scaling up essential community-based interventions by 90 % coverage by 2025. Analyses considered the survey design characteristics and were conducted via STATA version 12.0 and SAS version 9.4. Our results underscore significant pro-rich socioeconomic absolute and relative inequalities, and mass population deprivation across most all RMNCH interventions studied. The most inequitable are antenatal care with a skilled attendant (ANCS), skilled birth attendance (SBA), and 4 or more antenatal care visits (ANC4) where the richest have between 3.0 and 5.6 times higher coverage relative to the poor, and Q5-Q1 gaps range from 32 % - 65 %. Treatment of sick children and breastfeeding interventions are the most equitably distributed. Across regions, inequalities were highest in the more urbanised East, West and Central regions

  16. The contribution of smoking to inequalities in mortality by education varies over time and by sex: two national cohort studies, 1981-84 and 1996-99.

    PubMed

    Blakely, Tony; Wilson, Nick

    2005-10-01

    The contributions of tobacco smoking to overall mortality and socioeconomic inequalities in mortality vary between populations and over time. We determined how these contributions varied by sex and over time in two national New Zealand cohort studies. Poisson regression and modelling were conducted on linked census-mortality cohorts for people aged 45-74 years in 1981-84 and 1996-99 (2.0 and 2.7 million person-years, respectively). Contribution to socioeconomic inequalities in mortality. Adjusting for current and former smoking reduced the all-cause mortality rate ratios for men with nil educational qualifications compared with men with post-school qualifications from 1.34 to 1.29 in 1981-84 and from 1.31 to 1.25 in 1996-99, or 16 and 21% reductions in relative inequalities. Equivalent results for women were 1.42-1.41 in 1981-84 and 1.42-1.37 in 1996-99, or 3 and 11% reductions in relative inequalities. Contribution to overall mortality. Using 1996-99 data, we estimated that if all current smokers quit and became ex-smokers, mortality rates would reduce by 11% for men and 5% for women. If everyone was a never smoker (i.e. a historically smoke-free society), mortality rates would have been 26% lower for men and 25% lower for women. The contribution of smoking to educational inequalities in mortality was greater for males, and increased over time for both males and females, reflecting the historically differential phasing of the tobacco epidemic by sex and socioeconomic position. Complete cessation of smoking in contemporary New Zealand would reduce both overall mortality and educational inequalities in mortality.

  17. Educational inequality in Rio de Janeiro and its impact on multimorbidity: evidence from the Pró-Saúde study. A cross-sectional analysis.

    PubMed

    Jantsch, Adelson Guaraci; Alves, Ronaldo Fernandes Santos; Faerstein, Eduardo

    2018-01-01

    Information about multimorbidity is scarce in developing countries. This study aimed to estimate the association of educational attainment with occurrences of multimorbidity in a population of public employees on university campuses in Rio de Janeiro. We conducted cross-sectional analyses on baseline data (1999-2001) from 3,253 participants in the Pró-Saúde study, conducted in Brazil. The prevalence of multimorbidity, defined as a self-reported history of medical diagnoses of two or more chronic conditions, was estimated according to sex, age, smoking, obesity and educational level. The association between education and multimorbidity was estimated using odds ratios (OR) and the relative and slope indices of inequality, in order to quantify the degree of educational inequality among individuals with multimorbidity in this population. Greater age, female sex, smoking and obesity had direct associations with multimorbidity; and tobacco exposure and obesity also showed direct relationships with poorer educational level. There was a monotonic inverse linear trend between educational level and the presence of multimorbidity among women, with twice the odds (OR 2.47; 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.42-4.40) between extremities of schooling categories. There was excess multimorbidity of 22% at the lowest extremity of schooling, thus showing that women with worse educational status were more affected by the outcome. No trend and no excess multimorbidity was seen among men. Educational inequality is an important determinant for development of multimorbidity. Men and women experience its effect differently. Researchers need to consider that sex may be an effect modifier in multimorbidity studies.

  18. Health trends in the wake of the financial crisis-increasing inequalities?

    PubMed

    Nelson, Kenneth; Tøge, Anne Grete

    2017-08-01

    The financial crisis that hit Europe in 2007-2008 and the corresponding austerity policies have generated concern about increasing health inequalities, although impacts have been less salient than initially expected. One explanation could be that health inequalities emerged first a few years into the crisis. This study investigates health trends in the wake of the financial crisis and analyses health inequalities across a number of relevant population subgroups, including those defined by employment status, age, family type, gender, and educational attainment. This study uses individual-level panel data (EU-SILC, 2010-2013) to investigate trends in self-rated health. By applying individual fixed effects regression models, the study estimates the average yearly change in self-rated health for persons aged 15-64 years in 28 European countries. Health inequalities are investigated using stratified analyses. Unemployed respondents, particularly those who were unemployed in all years of observation, had a steeper decline in self-rated health than the employed. Respondents of prime working age (25-54 years) had a steeper decline than their younger (15-24) and older (55-64) counterparts, while single parents had a more favorable trend in self-rated health than dual parents. We did not observe any increasing health inequalities based on gender or educational attainment. Health inequalities increased in the wake of the financial crisis, especially those associated with employment status, age, and family type. We did not observe increasing health inequalities in terms of levels of educational attainment and gender.

  19. Fairness and Eligibility to Long-Term Care: An Analysis of the Factors Driving Inequality and Inequity in the Use of Home Care for Older Europeans.

    PubMed

    Ilinca, Stefania; Rodrigues, Ricardo; Schmidt, Andrea E

    2017-10-14

    In contrast with the case of health care, distributional fairness of long-term care (LTC) services in Europe has received limited attention. Given the increased relevance of LTC in the social policy agenda it is timely to evaluate the evidence on inequality and horizontal inequity by socio-economic status (SES) in the use of LTC and to identify the socio-economic factors that drive them. We address both aspects and reflect on the sensitivity of inequity estimates to adopting different definitions of legitimate drivers of care need. Using Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE)data collected in 2013, we analyse differences in home care utilization between community-dwelling Europeans in nine countries. We present concentration indexes and horizontal inequity indexes for each country and results from a decomposition analysis across income, care needs, household structures, education achievement and regional characteristics. We find pro-poor inequality in home care utilization but little evidence of inequity when accounting for differential care needs. Household characteristics are an important contributor to inequality, while education and geographic locations hold less explanatory power. We discuss the findings in light of the normative assumptions surrounding different definitions of need in LTC and the possible regressive implications of policies that make household structures an eligibility criterion to access services.

  20. Decomposing socioeconomic inequality in self-rated health in Tehran.

    PubMed

    Nedjat, Saharnaz; Hosseinpoor, Ahmad Reza; Forouzanfar, Mohammad Hossein; Golestan, Banafsheh; Majdzadeh, Reza

    2012-06-01

    Measuring the distribution of health is a part of assessing health system performance. This study aims to estimate health inequality between different socioeconomic groups and its determinants in Tehran, the capital of Iran. Self-rated health (SRH) and demographic characteristics, including gender, age, marital status, educational years, and assets, were measured by structured interviews of 2464 residents of Tehran in 2008. A concentration index was calculated to measure health inequality by economic status. The association of potential determinants and SRH was assessed through multivariate logistic regression. The contribution to concentration index of level of education, marital status and other determining factors was assessed by decomposition. The mean age of respondents was 41.4 years (SD 17.7) and 49% of them were men. The mean score of SRH status was 3.72 (range: 1-5; SD 0.93). 282 respondents (11.5%) rated their health status as poor or very poor. The concentration index was -0.29 (SE 0.03; p<0.001). Age, marital status, level of education and household economic status were significantly associated with SRH in both the crude and adjusted analyses. The main contributors to inequality in SRH were economic status (47.8%), level of education (29.2%) and age (23.0%). Sub-optimal SRH was more in lower than in higher economic status. After controlling for age, the levels of education and household wealth have the greatest contributions to SRH inequality.

  1. Socioeconomic Inequality and Its Determinants Regarding Infant Mortality in Iran

    PubMed Central

    Damghanian, Maryam; Shariati, Mohammad; Mirzaiinajmabadi, Khadigeh; Yunesian, Masud; Emamian, Mohammad Hassan

    2014-01-01

    Background: Infant mortality rate is a useful indicator of health conditions in the society, the racial and socioeconomic inequality of which is from the most important measures of social inequality. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the socioeconomic inequality and its determinants regarding infant mortality in an Iranian population. Patients and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 3794 children born during 2010-2011 in Shahroud, Iran. Based on children’s addresses and phone numbers, 3412 were available and finally 3297 participated in the study. A data collection form was filled out through interviewing the mothers as well as using health records. Using principal component analysis, the study population was divided to high and low socioeconomic groups based on the case’s home asset, education and job of the household’s head, marital status, and composition of the household members. Inequality between the groups with regard to infant mortality was investigated by Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition method. Results: The mortality rate was 15.1 per 1000 live births in the high socioeconomic group and 42.3 per 1000 in the low socioeconomic group. Mother's education, consanguinity of parents, and infant's nutrition type and birth weight constituted 44% of the gap contributing factors. Child's gender, high-risk pregnancy, and living area had no impact on the gap. Conclusions: There was considerable socioeconomic inequality regarding infant mortality in Shahroud. Mother's education was the most contributing factor in this inequality. PMID:25068048

  2. The HIV-poverty thesis re-examined: poverty, wealth or inequality as a social determinant of HIV infection in sub-Saharan Africa?

    PubMed

    Fox, Ashley M

    2012-07-01

    Although health is generally believed to improve with higher wealth, research on HIV in sub-Saharan Africa has shown otherwise. Whereas researchers and advocates have frequently advanced poverty as a social determinant that can help to explain sub-Saharan Africa's disproportionate burden of HIV infection, recent evidence from population surveys suggests that HIV infection is higher among wealthier individuals. Furthermore, wealthier countries in Africa have experienced the fastest growing epidemics. Some researchers have theorized that inequality in wealth may be more important than absolute wealth in explaining why some countries have higher rates of infection and rapidly increasing epidemics. Studies taking a longitudinal approach have further suggested a dynamic process whereby wealth initially increases risk for HIV acquisition and later becomes protective. Prior studies, conducted exclusively at either the individual or the country level, have neither attempted to disentangle the effects of absolute and relative wealth on HIV infection nor to look simultaneously at different levels of analysis within countries at different stages in their epidemics. The current study used micro-, meso- and macro-level data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) across 170 regions within sixteen countries in sub-Saharan Africa to test the hypothesis that socioeconomic inequality, adjusted for absolute wealth, is associated with greater risk of HIV infection. These analyses reveal that inequality trumps wealth: living in a region with greater inequality in wealth was significantly associated with increased individual risk of HIV infection, net of absolute wealth. The findings also reveal a paradox that supports a dynamic interpretation of epidemic trends: in wealthier regions/countries, individuals with less wealth were more likely to be infected with HIV, whereas in poorer regions/countries, individuals with more wealth were more likely to be infected with HIV. These

  3. Inequality Is the Problem: Prioritizing Research on Reducing Inequality. Annual Report

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gamoran, Adam

    2013-01-01

    Inequality in education and other domains of life stands in the way of economic and civic progress in the United States. It forestalls social mobility and economic productivity and impairs social cohesion. As a result, national and international leaders--from big-city mayors to Pope Francis--recognize that, as President Obama (2013) put it,…

  4. How social-class stereotypes maintain inequality.

    PubMed

    Durante, Federica; Fiske, Susan T

    2017-12-01

    Social class stereotypes support inequality through various routes: ambivalent content, early appearance in children, achievement consequences, institutionalization in education, appearance in cross-class social encounters, and prevalence in the most unequal societies. Class-stereotype content is ambivalent, describing lower-SES people both negatively (less competent, less human, more objectified), and sometimes positively, perhaps warmer than upper-SES people. Children acquire the wealth aspects of class stereotypes early, which become more nuanced with development. In school, class stereotypes advantage higher-SES students, and educational contexts institutionalize social-class distinctions. Beyond school, well-intentioned face-to-face encounters ironically draw on stereotypes to reinforce the alleged competence of higher-status people and sometimes the alleged warmth of lower-status people. Countries with more inequality show more of these ambivalent stereotypes of both lower-SES and higher-SES people. At a variety of levels and life stages, social-class stereotypes reinforce inequality, but constructive contact can undermine them; future efforts need to address high-status privilege and to query more heterogeneous samples. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Comparing Student Retention in a Public and a Private College: Implications for Tackling Inequality in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Achinewhu-Nworgu, Elizabeth

    2017-01-01

    I became interested in inequality in education and academic achievement from my youth, after I attended the first year of my secondary school in a rural college. However, I was also privileged to attend an elite college from year 2 of my secondary schooling, having changed from the rural college to a city college in the 70s. I realized, from these…

  6. Variations in the relation between education and cause-specific mortality in 19 European populations: a test of the "fundamental causes" theory of social inequalities in health.

    PubMed

    Mackenbach, Johan P; Kulhánová, Ivana; Bopp, Matthias; Deboosere, Patrick; Eikemo, Terje A; Hoffmann, Rasmus; Kulik, Margarete C; Leinsalu, Mall; Martikainen, Pekka; Menvielle, Gwenn; Regidor, Enrique; Wojtyniak, Bogdan; Östergren, Olof; Lundberg, Olle

    2015-02-01

    Link and Phelan have proposed to explain the persistence of health inequalities from the fact that socioeconomic status is a "fundamental cause" which embodies an array of resources that can be used to avoid disease risks no matter what mechanisms are relevant at any given time. To test this theory we compared the magnitude of inequalities in mortality between more and less preventable causes of death in 19 European populations, and assessed whether inequalities in mortality from preventable causes are larger in countries with larger resource inequalities. We collected and harmonized mortality data by educational level on 19 national and regional populations from 16 European countries in the first decade of the 21st century. We calculated age-adjusted Relative Risks of mortality among men and women aged 30-79 for 24 causes of death, which were classified into four groups: amenable to behavior change, amenable to medical intervention, amenable to injury prevention, and non-preventable. Although an overwhelming majority of Relative Risks indicate higher mortality risks among the lower educated, the strength of the education-mortality relation is highly variable between causes of death and populations. Inequalities in mortality are generally larger for causes amenable to behavior change, medical intervention and injury prevention than for non-preventable causes. The contrast between preventable and non-preventable causes is large for causes amenable to behavior change, but absent for causes amenable to injury prevention among women. The contrast between preventable and non-preventable causes is larger in Central & Eastern Europe, where resource inequalities are substantial, than in the Nordic countries and continental Europe, where resource inequalities are relatively small, but they are absent or small in Southern Europe, where resource inequalities are also large. In conclusion, our results provide some further support for the theory of "fundamental causes". However

  7. Investigating maternal risk factors as potential targets of intervention to reduce socioeconomic inequality in small for gestational age: a population-based study.

    PubMed

    Hayward, Irene; Malcoe, Lorraine Halinka; Cleathero, Lesley A; Janssen, Patricia A; Lanphear, Bruce P; Hayes, Michael V; Mattman, Andre; Pampalon, Robert; Venners, Scott A

    2012-06-13

    The major aim of this study was to investigate whether maternal risk factors associated with socioeconomic status and small for gestational age (SGA) might be viable targets of interventions to reduce differential risk of SGA by socioeconomic status (socioeconomic SGA inequality) in the metropolitan area of Vancouver, Canada. This study included 59,039 live, singleton births in the Vancouver Census Metropolitan Area (Vancouver) from January 1, 2006 to September 17, 2009. To identify an indicator of socioeconomic SGA inequality, we used hierarchical logistic regression to model SGA by area-level variables from the Canadian census. We then modelled SGA by area-level average income plus established maternal risk factors for SGA and calculated population attributable SGA risk percentages (PAR%) for each variable. Associations of maternal risk factors for SGA with average income were investigated to identify those that might contribute to SGA inequality. Finally, we estimated crude reductions in the percentage and absolute differences in SGA risks between highest and lowest average income quintiles that would result if interventions on maternal risk factors successfully equalized them across income levels or eliminated them altogether. Average income produced the most linear and statistically significant indicator of socioeconomic SGA inequality with 8.9% prevalence of SGA in the lowest income quintile compared to 5.6% in the highest. The adjusted PAR% of SGA for variables were: bottom four quintiles of height (51%), first birth (32%), bottom four quintiles of average income (14%), oligohydramnios (7%), underweight or hypertension, (6% each), smoking (3%) and placental disorder (1%). Shorter height, underweight and smoking during pregnancy had higher prevalence in lower income groups. Crude models assuming equalization of risk factors across income levels or elimination altogether indicated little potential change in relative socioeconomic SGA inequality and reduction

  8. LBW and IUGR temporal trend in 4 population-based birth cohorts: the role of economic inequality.

    PubMed

    Sadovsky, Ana D I; Matijasevich, Alicia; Santos, Iná S; Barros, Fernando C; Miranda, Angelica E; Silveira, Mariangela F

    2016-07-29

    Low/medium income countries, with health inequalities present high rates of neonates having low birthweight and/or are small for the gestational age. This study aims to analyze the absolute and relative income inequality in the occurrence of low birthweight and small size for gestational age among neonates in four birth cohorts from southern Brazil in 1982, 1993, 2004, and 2011. The main exhibit was monthly family income. The outcomes were birth with low birthweight or small for the gestational age. The inequalities were calculated using the Slope Index of Inequality and the Relative Index of Inequality adjusted for maternal skin color, schooling, age, and marital status. In all birth cohorts, poorer mothers were at greater odds of having neonates with low birthweight or small for the gestational age. There was a tendency to decrease the prevalence of small for gestational age in poorer families associated with the reduction of inequalities over the past decades, which was not observed regarding low birthweight. Economic inequalities occurred in neonates with low birthweight and with intrauterine growth restriction in the four studies, with a higher incidence of inadequate neonatal outcomes in the poorer families.

  9. Smoking, educational status and health inequity in India.

    PubMed

    Gupta, Rajeev

    2006-07-01

    Health related behaviours, especially smoking and tobacco use, are major determinants of health and lead to health inequities. Smoking leads to acute respiratory diseases, tuberculosis and asthma in younger age groups and non communicable diseases such as chronic lung disease, cardiovascular diseases and cancer in middle and older age. We observed an inverse association of educational status with tobacco use (smoking and other forms) in western Indian State of Rajasthan. In successive cross-sectional epidemiological studies- the Jaipur Heart Watch (JHW)- in rural (JHWR; n=3148, men=1982), and urban subjects: JHW-1 (n=2212, men=1415), JHW-2 (n=1124, men=550) and JHW-3 (n=458, men=226), we evaluated various cardiovascular risk factors. The greatest tobacco consumption was observed among the illiterate and low educational status subjects (nil, 1-5, 6-10, >10 yr of formal education) as compared to more literate in men (JHW-R 60, 51, 46 and 36% respectively; JHW-1 44, 52, 30 and 18% JHW-2 54, 43, 29 and 24%; and JHW-3 50, 27, 25 and 25%) as well as women (Mantel Haenzel test, P for trend <0.05). In the illiterate subjects the odds ratios (OR) and 95 per cent confidence intervals (CI) for smoking or tobacco use as compared to the highest educational groups in rural (men OR 2.68, CI 2.02, 3.57; women OR 3.13, CI 1.22, 8.08) as well as larger urban studies- JHW-1 (men OR 2.47, CI 1.70, 3.60; women OR 13.78, CI 3.35, 56.75) and JHW-2 (men OR 3.81; CI 1.90, 7.66; women OR 13.73, CI 1.84, 102.45) were significantly greater (P<0.01). Smoking significantly correlated with prevalence of coronary heart disease and hypertension. Other recent Indian studies and national surveys report similar associations. Health ethicists argue that good education and health lead to true development in an underprivileged society. We propose that improving educational status, a major social determinant of health, can lead to appropriate health related behaviours and prevent the epidemics of non

  10. Decomposing Socioeconomic Inequality Determinants in Suicide Deaths in Iran: A Concentration Index Approach.

    PubMed

    Veisani, Yousef; Delpisheh, Ali; Sayehmiri, Kourosh; Moradi, Ghobad; Hassanzadeh, Jafar

    2017-05-01

    It is recognized that socioeconomic status (SES) has a significant impact on health and wellbeing; however, the effect of SES on suicide is contested. This study explored the effect of SES in suicide deaths and decomposed inequality into its determinants to calculate relative contributions. Through a cross-sectional study, 546 suicide deaths and 6,818 suicide attempts from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2014 in Ilam Province, Western Iran were explored. Inequality was measured by the absolute concentration index (ACI) and decomposed contributions were identified. All analyses were performed using STATA ver. 11.2 (Stata Corp., College Station, TX, USA). The overall ACI for suicide deaths was -0.352 (95% confidence interval, -0.389 to -0.301). According to the results, 9.8% of socioeconomic inequality in suicide deaths was due to addiction in attempters. ACI ranged from -0.34 to -0.03 in 2010-2014, showing that inequality in suicide deaths declined over time. Findings showed suicide deaths were distributed among the study population unequally, and our results confirmed a gap between advantaged and disadvantaged attempters in terms of death. Socioeconomic inequalities in suicide deaths tended to diminish over time, as suicide attempts progressed in Ilam Province.

  11. Educational inequality by race in Brazil, 1982-2007: structural changes and shifts in racial classification.

    PubMed

    Marteleto, Leticia J

    2012-02-01

    Despite overwhelming improvements in educational levels and opportunity during the past three decades, educational disadvantages associated with race still persist in Brazil. Using the nationally representative Pesquisa Nacional de Amostra por Domicílio (PNAD) data from 1982 and 1987 to 2007, this study investigates educational inequalities between white, pardo (mixed-race), and black Brazilians over the 25-year period. Although the educational advantage of whites persisted during this period, I find that the significance of race as it relates to education changed. By 2007, those identified as blacks and pardos became more similar in their schooling levels, whereas in the past, blacks had greater disadvantages. I test two possible explanations for this shift: structural changes and shifts in racial classification. I find evidence for both. I discuss the findings in light of the recent race-based affirmative action policies being implemented in Brazilian universities.

  12. Literacy Inequalities in Theory and Practice: The Power to Name and Define

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Street, Brian V.

    2011-01-01

    I analyse what exactly is being addressed when the notion of "literacy inequalities" is cited in the context of international policy with regard to education in general and literacy in particular. Whilst literacy statistics are used as indicators of social inequality and as a basis for policy in improving rights, educational attainment, etc., I…

  13. Socioeconomic inequality in domains of health: results from the World Health Surveys

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background In all countries people of lower socioeconomic status evaluate their health more poorly. Yet in reporting overall health, individuals consider multiple domains that comprise their perceived health state. Considered alone, overall measures of self-reported health mask differences in the domains of health. The aim of this study is to compare and assess socioeconomic inequalities in each of the individual health domains and in a separate measure of overall health. Methods Data on 247,037 adults aged 18 or older were analyzed from 57 countries, drawn from all national income groups, participating in the World Health Survey 2002-2004. The analysis was repeated for lower- and higher-income countries. Prevalence estimates of poor self-rated health (SRH) were calculated for each domain and for overall health according to wealth quintiles and education levels. Relative socioeconomic inequalities in SRH were measured for each of the eight health domains and for overall health, according to wealth quintiles and education levels, using the relative index of inequality (RII). A RII value greater than one indicated greater prevalence of self-reported poor health among populations of lower socioeconomic status, called pro-rich inequality. Results There was a descending gradient in the prevalence of poor health, moving from the poorest wealth quintile to the richest, and moving from the lowest to the highest educated groups. Inequalities which favor groups who are advantaged either with respect to wealth or education, were consistently statistically significant in each of the individual domains of health, and in health overall. However the size of these inequalities differed between health domains. The prevalence of reporting poor health was higher in the lower-income country group. Relative socioeconomic inequalities in the health domains and overall health were higher in the higher-income country group than the lower-income country group. Conclusions Using a common

  14. Measuring socioeconomic inequality in health, health care and health financing by means of rank-dependent indices: A recipe for good practice

    PubMed Central

    Erreygers, Guido; Van Ourti, Tom

    2011-01-01

    The tools to be used and other choices to be made when measuring socioeconomic inequalities with rank-dependent inequality indices have recently been debated in this journal. This paper adds to this debate by stressing the importance of the measurement scale, by providing formal proofs of several issues in the debate, and by lifting the curtain on the confusing debate between adherents of absolute versus relative health differences. We end this paper with a ‘matrix’ that provides guidelines on the usefulness of several rank-dependent inequality indices under varying circumstances. PMID:21683462

  15. Putting the world as classroom: an application of the inequalities imagination model in nursing and health education.

    PubMed

    Racine, Louise; Proctor, Peggy; Jewell, Lisa M

    2012-01-01

    This article focuses on the description of an educational initiative, the Interdisciplinary Population Health Project (IPHP) conducted in the academic year of 2006-2007 with a group of nursing and health care students. Inspired by population health, community development, critical pedagogy, and the inequalities imagination model, students participated in diverse educational activities to become immersed in the everyday life of an underserved urban neighborhood. A sample of convenience composed of 158 students was recruited from 4 health disciplines in a Western Canadian university. Data were collected using a modified version of the Parsell and Bligh's Readiness of Health Care Students for Interprofessional Learning Scale. A one group pretest-posttest design was used to assess the outcomes of the IPHP. Paired t tests and one-way analyses of variance were used to compare the responses of students from different academic programs to determine if there were differences across disciplines. Findings suggest that students' readiness to work in interprofessional teams did not significantly change over the course of their participation in the IPHP. However, the inequalities imagination model may be useful to enhance the quality and the effectiveness of fieldwork learning activities as a means of educating culturally and socially conscious nurses and other health care professionals of the future.

  16. The value of education in special care dentistry as a means of reducing inequalities in oral health.

    PubMed

    Faulks, D; Freedman, L; Thompson, S; Sagheri, D; Dougall, A

    2012-11-01

    People with disability are subject to inequality in oral health both in terms of prevalence of disease and unmet healthcare needs. Over 18% of the global population is living with moderate to severe functional problems related to disability, and a large proportion of these persons will require Special Care Dentistry at some point in their lifetime. It is estimated that 90% of people requiring Special Care Dentistry should be able to access treatment in a local, primary care setting. Provision of such primary care is only possible through the education and training of dentists. The literature suggests that it is vital for the dental team to develop the necessary skills and gain experience treating people with special needs in order to ensure access to the provision of oral health care. Education in Special Care Dentistry worldwide might be improved by the development of a recognised academic and clinical discipline and by providing international curricula guidelines based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF, WHO). This article aims to discuss the role and value of promoting and harmonising education in Special Care Dentistry as a means of reducing inequalities in oral health. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

  17. Utility and limitations of measures of health inequities: a theoretical perspective

    PubMed Central

    Alonge, Olakunle; Peters, David H.

    2015-01-01

    Summary box What is already known on this subject? Various measures have been used in quantifying health inequities among populations in recent times; most of these measures were derived to capture the socioeconomic inequalities in health. These different measures do not always lend themselves to common interpretation by policy makers and health managers because they each reflect limited aspects of the concept of health inequities. What does this study add? To inform a more appropriate application of the different measures currently used in quantifying health inequities, this article explicates common theories underlying the definition of health inequities and uses this understanding to show the utility and limitations of these different measures. It also suggests some key features of an ideal indicator based on the conceptual understanding, with the hope of influencing future efforts in developing more robust measures of health inequities. The article also provides a conceptual ‘product label’ for the common measures of health inequities to guide users and ‘consumers’ in making more robust inferences and conclusions. This paper examines common approaches for quantifying health inequities and assesses the extent to which they incorporate key theories necessary for explicating the definition of health inequity. The first theoretical analysis examined the distinction between inter-individual and inter-group health inequalities as measures of health inequities. The second analysis considered the notion of fairness in health inequalities from different philosophical perspectives. To understand the extent to which different measures of health inequities incorporate these theoretical explanations, four criteria were used to assess each measure: 1) Does the indicator demonstrate inter-group or inter-individual health inequalities or both; 2) Does it reflect health inequalities in relation to socioeconomic position; 3) Is it sensitive to the absolute transfer of

  18. Ethnic inequalities in periodontal disease among British adults.

    PubMed

    Delgado-Angulo, Elsa K; Bernabé, Eduardo; Marcenes, Wagner

    2016-11-01

    To explore ethnic inequalities in periodontal disease among British adults, and the role of socioeconomic position (SEP) in those inequalities. We analysed data on 1925 adults aged 16-65 years, from the East London Oral Health Inequality (ELOHI) Study, which included a random sample of adults living in an ethnically diverse and socially deprived area. Participants completed a questionnaire and were clinically examined for the number of teeth with periodontal pocket depth (PPD)≥4 mm and loss of attachment (LOA)≥4 mm. Ethnic inequalities in periodontal measures were assessed in negative binomial regression models before and after adjustment for demographic (gender and age groups) and SEP indicators (education and socioeconomic classification). Compared to White British, Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi and Asian Others had more teeth with PPD≥4 mm whereas White East European, Black African and Bangladeshi had more teeth with LOA≥4 mm, after adjustments for demographic and SEP measures. The association of ethnicity with periodontal disease was moderated by education, but not by socioeconomic classification. Stratified analysis showed that ethnic disparities in the two periodontal measures were limited to more educated groups. This study showed considerable ethnic disparities in periodontal disease between and within the major ethnic categories. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Inequality spectra

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eliazar, Iddo

    2017-03-01

    Inequality indices are widely applied in economics and in the social sciences as quantitative measures of the socioeconomic inequality of human societies. The application of inequality indices extends to size-distributions at large, where these indices can be used as general gauges of statistical heterogeneity. Moreover, as inequality indices are plentiful, arrays of such indices facilitate high-detail quantification of statistical heterogeneity. In this paper we elevate from arrays of inequality indices to inequality spectra: continuums of inequality indices that are parameterized by a single control parameter. We present a general methodology of constructing Lorenz-based inequality spectra, apply the general methodology to establish four sets of inequality spectra, investigate the properties of these sets, and show how these sets generalize known inequality gauges such as: the Gini index, the extended Gini index, the Rényi index, and hill curves.

  20. Basic and Applied Research on Education and Social Inequality: Proceedings of the New York Education Policy Seminar (6th, Albany, New York, November 1988).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alexander, Karl L.; And Others

    A seminar paper concerning the relationship between applied and basic research in the study of educational and social inequality, and two commentaries are presented. The paper--"In Defense of Ivory-Towerism: Confessions of an Unreconstructed Basic Researcher," by Karl L. Alexander, the seminar's main speaker, presents the point of view of a…

  1. Changing patterns of breast cancer incidence and mortality by education level over four decades in Norway, 1971-2009.

    PubMed

    Trewin, Cassia B; Strand, Bjørn Heine; Weedon-Fekjær, Harald; Ursin, Giske

    2017-02-01

    In the last century, breast cancer incidence and mortality was higher among higher versus lower educated women in developed countries. Post-millennium, incidence rates have flattened off and mortality declined. We examined breast cancer trends by education level, to see whether recent improvements in incidence and mortality rates have occurred in all education groups. We linked individual registry data on female Norwegian inhabitants aged 35 years and over during 1971–2009. Using Poisson models, we calculated absolute and relative educational differences in age-standardised breast cancer incidence and mortality over four decades. We estimated educational differences by Slope and Relative Index of Inequality, which correspond to rate difference and rate ratio, comparing the highest to lowest educated women. Pre-millennium, incidence and mortality of breast cancer were significantly higher in higher versus lower educated women. Post-millennium, educational differences in breast cancer incidence and mortality attenuated. During 2000–2009, breast cancer incidence was still 38% higher for higher versus lower educated women (Relative Index of Inequality: 1.38, 95% confidence interval: 1.31–1.44), but mortality no longer varied significantly by education level (Relative Index of Inequality: 1.09, 95% confidence interval: 0.99–1.19). Among women below 50 years, however, the education gradient for mortality reversed, and mortality was 28% lower for the highest versus lowest educated women during 2000–2009 (Relative Index of Inequality: 0.72, 95% confidence interval: 0.51–0.93). Post-millennium improvements in breast cancer incidence and mortality have primarily benefited higher educated women. Breast cancer mortality is now highest among the lowest educated women below 50 years. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  2. Tragic Absolutism in Education.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arcilla, Rene Vincente

    1992-01-01

    Philosopher Nicholas Burbules' believed the tragedy of education was that in striving to educate, some teachers would inevitably fail some students, changing the students' lives tragically. The article analyzes the tragic sense of education that summons teachers to recollect more deeply the cause that started them on their endeavor. (SM)

  3. Socioeconomic inequalities in morbidity among the elderly; a European overview.

    PubMed

    Huisman, Martijn; Kunst, Anton E; Mackenbach, Johan P

    2003-09-01

    There is some evidence on socioeconomic inequality in morbidity among elderly people, but this evidence remains fragmentary. This study aims to give a comprehensive overview of educational and income inequalities in morbidity among the elderly of eleven European countries. Data from the first wave of 1994 of the European Community Household Panel were used. The study population comprised a total of 14,107 men and 17,243 women, divided into three age groups: 60-69, 70-79 and 80+. Three health indicators were used: self-assessed health, cut down in daily activities due to a physical or mental problem, and long-term disability. The results indicate that socioeconomic inequalities in morbidity by education and income exist among the elderly in Europe, in all the countries in this study and all age groups, including the oldest old. Inequalities decline with age among women, but not always among men. Greece, Ireland, Italy and The Netherlands most often show large inequalities among men, and Greece, Ireland and Spain do so among women. To conclude, inequalities in morbidity decrease with age, but a substantive part persists in old age. To improve the health of elderly people it is important that the material, social and cultural resources of the elderly are improved.

  4. Socioeconomic inequalities in dental services utilisation in a Norwegian county: the third Nord-Trondelag Health Survey.

    PubMed

    Vikum, Eirik; Krokstad, Steinar; Holst, Dorthe; Westin, Steinar

    2012-11-01

    To assess the level of socioeconomic inequity in dental care utilisation in Norway and enable comparison with recent international comparative studies. We studied dental care utilisation among 17,136 men and 21,414 women in the third Nord-Trøndelag Health Survey (2006-08). Respondents aged 20 years and above were included in the study, and analyses were also performed within subgroups of age and gender (20-39, 40-59, and ≥60 years). Income-related horizontal inequity was estimated by means of concentration indices. Education-related inequity was estimated as relative risks. We found consistent pro-rich income inequity among men and women of all ages. The level of income inequity was highest among men and women ≥60 years, and in this group the income gradient was steepest between the poorest and the middle quintiles. Pro-educated inequity was found exclusively among men and women ≥60 years. General attendance was high (77%). The overall level of income-related inequity in dental services utilisation was low compared to other European countries as reported in two recent international studies of socioeconomic inequalities in dental care utilisation. Pro-rich and pro-educated inequity is a public health challenge mainly in the older part of the population.

  5. Education Inequalities in Health Among Older European Men and Women: The Role of Active Aging.

    PubMed

    Arpino, Bruno; Solé-Auró, Aïda

    2017-08-01

    We assessed whether education inequalities in health among older people can be partially explained by different levels of active aging among educational groups. We applied logistic regression and the Karlson, Holm, & Breen (KHB) decomposition method using the 2010 and 2012 waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe on individuals aged 50+ years ( N = 27,579). Active aging included social participation, paid work, and provision of grandchild care. Health was measured by good self-perceived health, low number of depressive symptoms, and absence of limitations because of health in activities people usually do. We found a positive educational gradient for each of the three health measures. Up to a third of the health gaps between high and low educated were associated with differences in engagement in active aging activities. Policies devoted at stimulating an active participation in society among older people should be particularly focused on lower educated groups.

  6. Socioeconomic inequalities in health care utilisation in Norway: the population-based HUNT3 survey.

    PubMed

    Vikum, Eirik; Krokstad, Steinar; Westin, Steinar

    2012-08-22

    In this study we investigated the distribution of self-reported health care utilisation by education and household income in a county population in Norway, in a universal public health care system based on ideals of equal access for all according to need, and not according to wealth. The study included 24,147 women and 20,608 men aged 20 years and above in the third Nord-Trøndelag Health Survey (HUNT 3) of 2006-2008. Income-related horizontal inequity was estimated through concentration indexes, and inequity by both education and income was estimated as risk ratios through conventional regression. We found no overall pro-rich or pro-educated socioeconomic gradient in needs-adjusted utilisation of general practitioner or inpatient care. However, we found overall pro-rich and pro-educated inequity in utilisation of both private medical specialists and hospital outpatient care. For these services there were large differences in levels of inequity between younger and older men and women. In contrast with recent studies from Norway, we found pro-rich and pro-educated social inequalities in utilisation of hospital outpatient services and not only private medical specialists. Utilisation of general practitioner and inpatient services, which have low access threshold or are free of charge, we found to be equitable.

  7. Facing Inequality and the End of Work.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Til, Jon Van

    1997-01-01

    Responding to articles in the February 1997 "Educational Leadership" on "Rethinking the Purpose of Education," this article deplores worsening social inequalities and upholds the importance of the third sector and service learning in societal transformation. A simple checklist (the PECTS system) shows how politics, the economy,…

  8. ORACLE INEQUALITIES FOR THE LASSO IN THE COX MODEL

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Jian; Sun, Tingni; Ying, Zhiliang; Yu, Yi; Zhang, Cun-Hui

    2013-01-01

    We study the absolute penalized maximum partial likelihood estimator in sparse, high-dimensional Cox proportional hazards regression models where the number of time-dependent covariates can be larger than the sample size. We establish oracle inequalities based on natural extensions of the compatibility and cone invertibility factors of the Hessian matrix at the true regression coefficients. Similar results based on an extension of the restricted eigenvalue can be also proved by our method. However, the presented oracle inequalities are sharper since the compatibility and cone invertibility factors are always greater than the corresponding restricted eigenvalue. In the Cox regression model, the Hessian matrix is based on time-dependent covariates in censored risk sets, so that the compatibility and cone invertibility factors, and the restricted eigenvalue as well, are random variables even when they are evaluated for the Hessian at the true regression coefficients. Under mild conditions, we prove that these quantities are bounded from below by positive constants for time-dependent covariates, including cases where the number of covariates is of greater order than the sample size. Consequently, the compatibility and cone invertibility factors can be treated as positive constants in our oracle inequalities. PMID:24086091

  9. ORACLE INEQUALITIES FOR THE LASSO IN THE COX MODEL.

    PubMed

    Huang, Jian; Sun, Tingni; Ying, Zhiliang; Yu, Yi; Zhang, Cun-Hui

    2013-06-01

    We study the absolute penalized maximum partial likelihood estimator in sparse, high-dimensional Cox proportional hazards regression models where the number of time-dependent covariates can be larger than the sample size. We establish oracle inequalities based on natural extensions of the compatibility and cone invertibility factors of the Hessian matrix at the true regression coefficients. Similar results based on an extension of the restricted eigenvalue can be also proved by our method. However, the presented oracle inequalities are sharper since the compatibility and cone invertibility factors are always greater than the corresponding restricted eigenvalue. In the Cox regression model, the Hessian matrix is based on time-dependent covariates in censored risk sets, so that the compatibility and cone invertibility factors, and the restricted eigenvalue as well, are random variables even when they are evaluated for the Hessian at the true regression coefficients. Under mild conditions, we prove that these quantities are bounded from below by positive constants for time-dependent covariates, including cases where the number of covariates is of greater order than the sample size. Consequently, the compatibility and cone invertibility factors can be treated as positive constants in our oracle inequalities.

  10. One-Dimensional School Rankings: A Non-Neutral Device that Conceals and Naturalises Inequalities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Neves, Tiago; Pereira, Maria Joao; Nata, Gil

    2012-01-01

    Inequality has long been a central topic in the social sciences. The same holds true with regard to sociological research on education. In this paper we argue that, due to fairly recent developments in the managerialisation and marketisation of the educational field, often associated with the rise of neoliberalism, the topic of inequality gains…

  11. Ethnic Inequality

    PubMed Central

    Alesina, Alberto; Michalopoulos, Stelios; Papaioannou, Elias

    2015-01-01

    This study explores the consequences and origins of between-ethnicity economic inequality across countries. First, combining satellite images of nighttime luminosity with the historical homelands of ethnolinguistic groups we construct measures of ethnic inequality for a large sample of countries. We also compile proxies of overall spatial inequality and regional inequality across administrative units. Second, we uncover a strong negative association between ethnic inequality and contemporary comparative development; the correlation is also present when we condition on regional inequality, which is itself related to under-development. Third, we investigate the roots of ethnic inequality and establish that differences in geographic endowments across ethnic homelands explain a sizable fraction of the observed variation in economic disparities across groups. Fourth, we show that ethnic-specific inequality in geographic endowments is also linked to under-development. PMID:27330223

  12. Adult learning and social inequalities: Processes of equalisation or cumulative disadvantage?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kilpi-Jakonen, Elina; Vono de Vilhena, Daniela; Blossfeld, Hans-Peter

    2015-08-01

    Adult learning is an increasingly important form of education in globalised and aging societies. While current policy recommendations tend to focus on increasing participation rates, the authors of this article argue that higher participation rates do not necessarily lead to lower social/educational inequalities in participation. The aim of this paper is to examine the relationship between social inequalities and adult learning by exploring cross-national patterns of participation in different adult learning activities and the consequences of participation on individual labour market trajectories. The empirical basis of the paper is an analysis of 13 country studies (as well as two cross-national analyses) brought together by the international comparative research project "Education as a lifelong process - comparing educational trajectories in modern societies" ( eduLIFE). Despite wide variations in participation rates across countries, mechanisms of social/educational inequality in engagement in job-related adult learning tend to be relatively similar across countries, in particular with regard to non-formal learning. Effects tend most frequently to be a presence of cumulative advantage, though in some countries a certain degree of equalisation is noticeable with regard to formal adult education. The authors conclude that it is relatively clear that currently almost no country is truly able to reduce social inequalities through adult learning. Their recommendation is that public policy makers should place greater emphasis on making adult learning more accessible (in terms of entry requirements, affordability as well as motivation) to underrepresented groups, in particular those who are educationally disadvantaged.

  13. Determinants of immunization inequality among urban poor children: evidence from Nairobi's informal settlements.

    PubMed

    Egondi, Thaddaeus; Oyolola, Maharouf; Mutua, Martin Kavao; Elung'ata, Patricia

    2015-02-27

    Despite the relentless efforts to reduce infant and child mortality with the introduction of the National Expanded Programmes on Immunization (EPI) in 1974, major disparities still exist in immunizations coverage across different population sub-groups. In Kenya, for instance, while the proportion of fully immunized children increased from 57% in 2003 to 77% in 2008-9 at national level and 73% in Nairobi, only 58% of children living in informal settlement areas are fully immunized. The study aims to determine the degree and determinants of immunization inequality among the urban poor of Nairobi. We used data from the Nairobi Cross-Sectional Slum Survey of 2012 and the health outcome was full immunization status among children aged 12-23 months. The wealth index was used as a measure of social economic position for inequality analysis. The potential determinants considered included sex of the child and mother's education, their occupation, age at birth of the child, and marital status. The concentration index (CI) was used to quantify the degree of inequality and decomposition approach to assess determinants of inequality in immunization. The CI for not fully immunized was -0.08 indicating that immunization inequality is mainly concentrated among children from poor families. Decomposition of the results suggests that 78% of this inequality is largely explained by the mother's level of education. There exists immunization inequality among urban poor children in Nairobi and efforts to reduce this inequality should aim at targeting mothers with low level of education during immunization campaigns.

  14. Moving beyond the residential neighborhood to explore social inequalities in exposure to area-level disadvantage: Results from the Interdisciplinary Study on Inequalities in Smoking.

    PubMed

    Shareck, Martine; Kestens, Yan; Frohlich, Katherine L

    2014-05-01

    The focus, in place and health research, on a single, residential, context overlooks the fact that individuals are mobile and experience other settings in the course of their daily activities. Socio-economic characteristics are associated with activity patterns, as well as with the quality of places where certain groups conduct activities, i.e. their non-residential activity space. Examining how measures of exposure to resources, and inequalities thereof, compare between residential and non-residential contexts is required. Baseline data from 1890 young adults (18-25 years-old) participating in the Interdisciplinary Study of Inequalities in Smoking, Montreal, Canada (2011-2012), were analyzed. Socio-demographic and activity location data were collected using a validated, self-administered questionnaire. Area-level material deprivation was measured within 500-m road-network buffer zones around participants' residential and activity locations. Deprivation scores in the residential area and non-residential activity space were compared between social groups. Multivariate linear regression was used to estimate associations between individual- and area-level characteristics and non-residential activity space deprivation, and to explore whether these characteristics attenuated the education-deprivation association. Participants in low educational categories lived and conducted activities in more disadvantaged areas than university students/graduates. Educational inequalities in exposure to area-level deprivation were larger in the non-residential activity space than in the residential area for the least educated, but smaller for the intermediate group. Adjusting for selected covariates such as transportation resources and residential deprivation did not significantly attenuate the education-deprivation associations. Results support the existence of social isolation in residential areas and activity locations, whereby less educated individuals tend to be confined to more

  15. [Monitoring of inequality in financial protection and healthcare in Mexico: an analysis of health surveys 2000, 2006 and 2012].

    PubMed

    Gutiérrez, Juan Pablo; García-Saisó, Sebastián; Espinosa-de la Peña, Rodrigo; Balandrán, Dulce Alejandra

    2016-01-01

    To analyze trends in inequality in financial protection and healthcare in Mexico between 2000 and 2012, using simple and complex measures. Analysis of national health surveys 2000, 2006 and 2012, generating estimates of absolute and relative gaps and the slope index of inequality using imputated income as socioeconomic measure, and differences by sex, rural/urban residence, and ethnic background. Between 2000 and 2012, socioeconomic inequality in financial protection vanished, while it remains in healthcare access, with larger barriers to access healthcare among those in the lowest socioeconomic condition. These results are consistent with the differences by urban/rural residence and ethnic background. The health reform in 2003, aiming to increase health insurance, resulted in the virtual elimination of socioeconomic inequality in financial protection, but there is still inequality in access to healthcare. Actions to eliminate access barriers related to quality of health services are urgent to promote effective access to healthcare.

  16. Occupational class inequalities in health across employment sectors: the contribution of working conditions.

    PubMed

    Lahelma, Eero; Laaksonen, Mikko; Aittomäki, Akseli

    2009-01-01

    While health inequalities among employees are well documented, their variation and determinants among employee subpopulations are poorly understood. We examined variations in occupational class inequalities in health within four employment sectors and the contribution of working conditions to these inequalities. Cross-sectional data from the Helsinki Health Study in 2000-2002 were used. Each year, employees of the City of Helsinki, aged 40-60 years, received a mailed questionnaire (n = 8,960, 80% women, overall response rate for 3 years 67%). The outcome was physical health functioning measured by the overall physical component summary of SF-36. The socioeconomic indicator was occupational social class. Employment sectors studied were health care, education, social welfare and administration (n = 6,557). Physical and mental workload, and job demands and job control were explanatory factors. Inequality indices from logistic regression analysis were calculated. Occupational class inequalities in physical health functioning were slightly larger in education (1.47) than in the other sectors (1.43-1.40). Physical workload explained 95% of inequalities in social welfare and 32-36% in the other sectors. Job control also partly explained health inequalities. However, adjusting for mental workload and job demands resulted in larger health inequalities. Inequalities in physical health functioning were found within each employment sector, with minor variation in their magnitude. Physical workload was the main explanation for these inequalities, but its contribution varied between the sectors. In contrast, considering psychosocial working conditions led to wider inequalities. Improving physical working conditions among the lower occupational classes would help reduce health inequalities within different employment sectors.

  17. Widening Income Inequalities: Higher Education's Role in Serving Low Income Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dalton, Jon C.; Crosby, Pamela C.

    2015-01-01

    Many scholars argue that America is becoming a dangerously divided nation because of increasing inequality, especially in income distribution. This article examines the problem of widening income inequality with particular focus on the role that colleges and universities and their student affairs organizations play in serving low income students…

  18. Socio-economic inequalities in overweight among adults in Turkey: a regional evaluation.

    PubMed

    Ergin, Isil; Hassoy, Hur; Kunst, Anton

    2012-01-01

    Patterns of socio-economic inequalities in obesity and overweight have not been documented for Turkey. The present study aimed to describe educational and wealth-related inequalities for overweight in Turkey, taking a regional perspective. Cross-sectional self-reported data of the World Health Survey 2002 for Turkey were used. BMI ≥ 25·00 kg/m2 was considered as overweight. Respondents were classified according to education years and a wealth score derived from the availability of household assets. Logistic regression analysis was applied to assess the relationship between overweight and socio-economic factors. Analyses were stratified by sex and region (West, Mediterranean, Middle, Black Sea and East). Turkey. Among the respondents 20 years and older, 3790 women and 4057 men had data on self-reported height and weight. Age-adjusted overweight prevalence was 48·4 % for women and 46·1 % for men. For men, education was not systematically related to overweight while overweight was significantly increased among the highest wealth groups. For women, the prevalence of overweight was highest for low-educated and middle-wealth groups. The size of the inequalities in overweight showed only small regional variations. In the East, however, overweight prevalence was more related to higher socio-economic position than in the other regions. Socio-economic inequalities for overweight in Turkey are at a similar level as in most European countries, and especially comparable to Southern Europe. The smaller inequalities in the East correspond to the low level of socio-economic development in this part of the country. Prevention of overweight should focus on lower educational groups throughout the entire country and especially on low-educated women.

  19. On Relative and Absolute Conviction in Mathematics

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Weber, Keith; Mejia-Ramos, Juan Pablo

    2015-01-01

    Conviction is a central construct in mathematics education research on justification and proof. In this paper, we claim that it is important to distinguish between absolute conviction and relative conviction. We argue that researchers in mathematics education frequently have not done so and this has lead to researchers making unwarranted claims…

  20. Measuring socioeconomic inequality in health, health care and health financing by means of rank-dependent indices: a recipe for good practice.

    PubMed

    Erreygers, Guido; Van Ourti, Tom

    2011-07-01

    The tools to be used and other choices to be made when measuring socioeconomic inequalities with rank-dependent inequality indices have recently been debated in this journal. This paper adds to this debate by stressing the importance of the measurement scale, by providing formal proofs of several issues in the debate, and by lifting the curtain on the confusing debate between adherents of absolute versus relative health differences. We end this paper with a 'matrix' that provides guidelines on the usefulness of several rank-dependent inequality indices under varying circumstances. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Educational Inequality by Race in Brazil, 1982–2007: Structural Changes and Shifts in Racial Classification

    PubMed Central

    Marteleto, Leticia J.

    2013-01-01

    Despite overwhelming improvements in educational levels and opportunity during the past three decades, educational disadvantages associated with race still persist in Brazil. Using the nationally representative Pesquisa Nacional de Amostra por Domicílio (PNAD) data from 1982 and 1987 to 2007, this study investigates educational inequalities between white, pardo (mixed-race), and black Brazilians over the 25-year period. Although the educational advantage of whites persisted during this period, I find that the significance of race as it relates to education changed. By 2007, those identified as blacks and pardos became more similar in their schooling levels, whereas in the past, blacks had greater disadvantages. I test two possible explanations for this shift: structural changes and shifts in racial classification. I find evidence for both. I discuss the findings in light of the recent race-based affirmative action policies being implemented in Brazilian universities. PMID:22259031

  2. Visual impairment and blindness in spanish adults: geographic inequalities are not explained by age or education.

    PubMed

    Rius, Anna; Artazcoz, Lucía; Guisasola, Laura; Benach, Joan

    2014-01-01

    The objectives of this study were to examine for the first time the prevalence of visual impairment and blindness among adults in Spain, to explore regional differences, and to assess whether they may vary as a function of sex or be explained by age and individual or regional socioeconomic position. Data were obtained from the 2008 Spanish Survey on Disability, Personal Autonomy, and Dependency Situations, a cross-sectional survey based on a representative sample of the noninstitutionalized population of Spain. The sample was composed of 213 626 participants aged ≥15 years (103 093 men and 110 533 women); 360 were blind (160 men and 200 women), 4048 had near visual impairment (1397 men and 2651 women), and 4034 had distance visual impairment (1445 men and 2589 women). The prevalence of near and distance visual impairment was calculated for each region. Multiple logistic regression models were fitted to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. All analyses were stratified by sex. Visual impairment was based on 3 questions aimed at identifying blindness and near and distance visual impairment. The prevalence (percentage) of blindness was 0.17 (men, 0.16; women, 0.18): 1.89 for near visual impairment (men, 1.36; women, 2.40), 1.89 for distance visual impairment (men, 1.40; women, 2.34), and 2.43 for any visual impairment (men, 1.81; women, 3.02). Regional inequalities in the prevalence of visual impairment were observed, correlated with regional income, and the prevalence was consistently higher among women than men. The magnitude of the inequalities remained after adjusting for age and educational level, and a north-to-south pattern of increasing prevalence was observed. Regional and sex inequalities in the prevalence of visual impairment and blindness were observed in Spain, with a north-to-south gradient of increasing prevalence that was not explained by age or individual educational level but was correlated with regional level of economic

  3. Educational inequalities in ischaemic heart disease mortality in 44,000 Norwegian women and men: the influence of psychosocial and behavioural factors. The HUNT Study.

    PubMed

    Ernstsen, Linda; Bjerkeset, Ottar; Krokstad, Steinar

    2010-11-01

    To investigate the influence of psychosocial and behavioural factors on educational inequalities in ischaemic heart disease (IHD) mortality. A population-based cohort study of 44,128 women and men free of IHD aged 30 years and older at baseline in 1995-97. After adjustment for age and long-standing illness, both women (HR 3.22, 95% CI 1.31-7.90) and men (HR 1.57, 95% CI 1.03-2.40) who completed only primary education level (primary and lower secondary school) were at increased risk for IHD mortality compared to those who completed the tertiary education level (first and second stage of tertiary education). Behavioural factors explained 25% of the relative difference between primary and tertiary education level in IHD mortality among women and 53 % in men. Psychosocial factors had small influence on the relative difference in IHD mortality Findings from this study indicate that differences in behavioural factors contribute considerably more to inequalities in IHD mortality in educational levels than do psychosocial factors, and this effect seems to be stronger in men than women.

  4. Gender Inequalities in the Transition to College

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Buchmann, Claudia

    2009-01-01

    Background: In terms of high school graduation, college entry, and persistence to earning a college degree, young women now consistently outperform their male peers. Yet most research on gender inequalities in education continues to focus on aspects of education where women trail men, such as women's underrepresentation at top-tier institutions…

  5. Site-specific cancer mortality inequalities by employment and occupational groups: a cohort study among Belgian adults, 2001-2011.

    PubMed

    Vanthomme, Katrien; Van den Borre, Laura; Vandenheede, Hadewijch; Hagedoorn, Paulien; Gadeyne, Sylvie

    2017-11-12

    This study probes into site-specific cancer mortality inequalities by employment and occupational group among Belgians, adjusted for other indicators of socioeconomic (SE) position. This cohort study is based on record linkage between the Belgian censuses of 1991 and 2001 and register data on emigration and mortality for 01/10/2001 to 31/12/2011. Belgium. The study population contains all Belgians within the economically active age (25-65 years) at the census of 1991. Both absolute and relative measures were calculated. First, age-standardised mortality rates have been calculated, directly standardised to the Belgian population. Second, mortality rate ratios were calculated using Poisson's regression, adjusted for education, housing conditions, attained age, region and migrant background. This study highlights inequalities in site-specific cancer mortality, both related to being employed or not and to the occupational group of the employed population. Unemployed men and women show consistently higher overall and site-specific cancer mortality compared with the employed group. Also within the employed group, inequalities are observed by occupational group. Generally manual workers and service and sales workers have higher site-specific cancer mortality rates compared with white-collar workers and agricultural and fishery workers. These inequalities are manifest for almost all preventable cancer sites, especially those cancer sites related to alcohol and smoking such as cancers of the lung, oesophagus and head and neck. Overall, occupational inequalities were less pronounced among women compared with men. Important SE inequalities in site-specific cancer mortality were observed by employment and occupational group. Ensuring financial security for the unemployed is a key issue in this regard. Future studies could also take a look at other working regimes, for instance temporary employment or part-time employment and their relation to health. © Article author(s) (or

  6. Fertility decline and the changing dynamics of wealth, status and inequality.

    PubMed

    Colleran, Heidi; Jasienska, Grazyna; Nenko, Ilona; Galbarczyk, Andrzej; Mace, Ruth

    2015-05-07

    In the course of demographic transitions (DTs), two large-scale trends become apparent: (i) the broadly positive association between wealth, status and fertility tends to reverse, and (ii) wealth inequalities increase and then temporarily decrease. We argue that these two broad patterns are linked, through a diversification of reproductive strategies that subsequently converge as populations consume more, become less self-sufficient and increasingly depend on education as a route to socio-economic status. We examine these links using data from 22 mid-transition communities in rural Poland. We identify changing relationships between fertility and multiple measures of wealth, status and inequality. Wealth and status generally have opposing effects on fertility, but these associations vary by community. Where farming remains a viable livelihood, reproductive strategies typical of both pre- and post-DT populations coexist. Fertility is lower and less variable in communities with lower wealth inequality, and macro-level patterns in inequality are generally reproduced at the community level. Our results provide a detailed insight into the changing dynamics of wealth, status and inequality that accompany DTs at the community level where peoples' social and economic interactions typically take place. We find no evidence to suggest that women with the most educational capital gain wealth advantages from reducing fertility, nor that higher educational capital delays the onset of childbearing in this population. Rather, these patterns reflect changing reproductive preferences during a period of profound economic and social change, with implications for our understanding of reproductive and socio-economic inequalities in transitioning populations.

  7. Fertility decline and the changing dynamics of wealth, status and inequality

    PubMed Central

    Colleran, Heidi; Jasienska, Grazyna; Nenko, Ilona; Galbarczyk, Andrzej; Mace, Ruth

    2015-01-01

    In the course of demographic transitions (DTs), two large-scale trends become apparent: (i) the broadly positive association between wealth, status and fertility tends to reverse, and (ii) wealth inequalities increase and then temporarily decrease. We argue that these two broad patterns are linked, through a diversification of reproductive strategies that subsequently converge as populations consume more, become less self-sufficient and increasingly depend on education as a route to socio-economic status. We examine these links using data from 22 mid-transition communities in rural Poland. We identify changing relationships between fertility and multiple measures of wealth, status and inequality. Wealth and status generally have opposing effects on fertility, but these associations vary by community. Where farming remains a viable livelihood, reproductive strategies typical of both pre- and post-DT populations coexist. Fertility is lower and less variable in communities with lower wealth inequality, and macro-level patterns in inequality are generally reproduced at the community level. Our results provide a detailed insight into the changing dynamics of wealth, status and inequality that accompany DTs at the community level where peoples' social and economic interactions typically take place. We find no evidence to suggest that women with the most educational capital gain wealth advantages from reducing fertility, nor that higher educational capital delays the onset of childbearing in this population. Rather, these patterns reflect changing reproductive preferences during a period of profound economic and social change, with implications for our understanding of reproductive and socio-economic inequalities in transitioning populations. PMID:25833859

  8. Decomposing Inequalities in Performance Scores: The Role of Student Background, Peer Effects and School Characteristics

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mostafa, Tarek

    2010-01-01

    This paper analyses the mechanisms of stratification and inequalities in educational achievements. The main objective is to determine how stratification leads to unequal educational outcomes and how inequalities are channelled through student characteristics, school characteristics and peer effects. This analysis is undertaken in five countries…

  9. Disrupting Educational Inequalities through Youth Digital Activism

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stornaiuolo, Amy; Thomas, Ebony Elizabeth

    2017-01-01

    This article reviews scholarship on youth and young adult activism in digital spaces, as young users of participatory media sites are engaging in political, civic, social, or cultural action and advocacy online to create social change. The authors argue that youth's digital activism serves as a central mechanism to disrupt inequality, and that…

  10. Adolescents' psychological health during the economic recession: does public spending buffer health inequalities among young people?

    PubMed

    Rathmann, Katharina; Pförtner, Timo-Kolja; Osorio, Ana M; Hurrelmann, Klaus; Elgar, Frank J; Bosakova, Lucia; Richter, Matthias

    2016-08-24

    Many OECD countries have replied to economic recessions with an adaption in public spending on social benefits for families and young people in need. So far, no study has examined the impact of public social spending during the recent economic recession on health, and social inequalities in health among young people. This study investigates whether an increase in public spending relates to a lower prevalence in health complaints and buffers health inequalities among adolescents. Data were obtained from the 2009/2010 "Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC)" study comprising 11 - 15-year-old adolescents from 27 European countries (N = 144,754). Socioeconomic position was measured by the Family Affluence Scale (FAS). Logistic multilevel models were conducted for the association between the absolute rate of public spending on family benefits per capita in 2010 and the relative change rate in family benefits (2006-2010) in relation to adolescent psychological health complaints in 2009/2010. The absolute rate of public spending on family benefits in 2010 did not show a significant association with adolescents' psychological health complaints. Relative change rates of public spending on family benefits (2006-2010) were related to better health. Greater socioeconomic inequalities in psychological health complaints were found for countries with higher change rates in public spending on family benefits (2006-2010). The results partially support our hypothesis and highlight that policy initiatives in terms of an increase in family benefits might partially benefit adolescent health, but tend to widen social inequalities in adolescent health during the recent recession.

  11. Inequality and School reform in Bahia, Brazil

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reiter, Bernd

    2009-07-01

    This article compares public and community schools in Salvador, the state capital of Bahia, Brazil. Based on quantitative data analysis and qualitative research conducted on-site during three research trips in 2001, 2003 and 2005, the author finds that Brazil's extreme inequality and the associated concentration of state power in a few hands stand in the way of an effective reform. In 1999, the state of Bahia started to reform its basic education cycle, but the author's research shows that Bahian elites use access to basic education to defend their inherited privilege. The analysis of community schools further demonstrates that inequality also blocks effective community and parental involvement in school management, as schools tend to distance themselves from neighbourhoods portrayed as poor and black, and thus "dangerous".

  12. Assessing socioeconomic inequalities of hypertension among women in Indonesia's major cities.

    PubMed

    Christiani, Y; Byles, J E; Tavener, M; Dugdale, P

    2015-11-01

    Although hypertension has been recognized as one of the major public health problems, few studies address economic inequality of hypertension among urban women in developing countries. To assess this issue, we analysed data for 1400 women from four of Indonesia's major cities: Jakarta, Surabaya, Medan and Bandung. Women were aged ⩾15 years (mean age 35.4 years), and were participants in the 2007/2008 Indonesia Family Life Survey. The prevalence of hypertension measured by digital sphygmomanometer among this population was 31%. Using a multivariable logistic regression model, socioeconomic disadvantage (based on household assets and characteristics) as well as age, body mass index and economic conditions were significantly associated with hypertension (P<0.05). Applying the Fairlie decomposition model, results showed that 14% of the inequality between less and more economically advantaged groups could be accounted for by the distribution of socioeconomic characteristics. Education was the strongest contributor to inequality, with lower education levels increasing the predicted probability of hypertension among less economically advantaged groups. This work highlights the importance of socioeconomic inequality in the development of hypertension, and particularly the effects of education level.

  13. Social inequalities in mortality by cause among men and women in France.

    PubMed

    Saurel-Cubizolles, M-J; Chastang, J-F; Menvielle, G; Leclerc, A; Luce, D

    2009-03-01

    The aim of this study was to compare inequalities in mortality (all causes and by cause) by occupational group and educational level between men and women living in France in the 1990s. Data were analysed from a permanent demographic sample currently including about one million people. The French Institute of Statistics (INSEE) follows the subjects and collects demographic, social and occupational information from the census schedules and vital status forms. Causes of death were obtained from the national file of the French Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM). A relative index of inequality (RII) was calculated to quantify inequalities as a function of educational level and occupational group. Overall all-cause mortality, mortality due to cancer, mortality due to cardiovascular disease and mortality due to external causes (accident, suicide, violence) were considered. Overall, social inequalities were found to be wider among men than among women, for all-cause mortality, cancer mortality and external-cause mortality. However, this trend was not observed for cardiovascular mortality, for which the social inequalities were greater for women than for men, particularly for mortality due to ischaemic cardiac diseases. This study provides evidence for persistent social inequalities in mortality in France, in both men and women. These findings highlight the need for greater attention to social determinants of health. The reduction of cardiovascular disease mortality in low educational level groups should be treated as a major public health priority.

  14. The Needs of the Highly Able and the Needs of Society: A Multidisciplinary Analysis of Talent Differentiation and Its Significance to Gifted Education and Issues of Societal Inequality

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Persson, Roland S.

    2014-01-01

    Does gifted education affect societal inequality, and does societal inequality suppress and/or distort the development of high ability? Drawing from several academic disciplines and current political discourse, a differentiated use of terms used to describe the highly able is explored in this article. A social evolutionary framework is proposed as…

  15. Impact of national income and inequality on sugar and caries relationship.

    PubMed

    Masood, M; Masood, Y; Newton, T

    2012-01-01

    The aim of this study was to examine the impact that national income and income inequality in high and low income countries have on the relationship between dental caries and sugar consumption. An ecological study design was used in this study of 73 countries. The mean decayed, missing, or filled permanent teeth (DMFT) for 12-year-old children were obtained from the WHO Oral Health Country/Area Profile Programme. United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization data were used for per capita sugar consumption. Gross national incomes per capita based on purchasing power parity and the Gini coefficient were obtained from World Bank data. Bivariate and multivariate linear regression analysis was performed to estimate the associations between mean DMFT and per capita sugar consumption in different income and income inequality countries. Bivariate and multivariate regression analysis showed that countries with a high national income and low income inequality have a strong negative association between sugar consumption and caries (B = -2.80, R2 = 0.17), whereas countries with a low income and high income inequality have a strong positive relationship between DMFT and per capita sugar consumption (B = -0.89, R2 = 0.20). The relationship between per capita consumption of sugar and dental caries is modified by the absolute level of income of the country, but not by the level of income inequality within a country. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  16. The Great Recession, Adolescent Smoking, and Smoking Inequalities: What Role Does Youth Unemployment Play in 24 European Countries?

    PubMed

    Rathmann, Katharina; Pförtner, Timo-Kolja; Elgar, Frank J; Hurrelmann, Klaus; Richter, Matthias

    2017-11-01

    Conflicting evidence has been reported on smoking behavior among adults during times of economic downturn. No study has yet investigated young people's smoking and inequalities in smoking during economic recessions. This study examines the association between country-level youth unemployment due to the economic recession and adolescent smoking and smoking inequalities in Europe. The WHO collaborative "Health Behaviour in School-aged Children" study in 2009/2010 included 15-year-old adolescents from 24 European countries (N = 43 093). Socioeconomic position (SEP) was measured by the Family Affluence Scale. Logistic multilevel models were conducted. The absolute rate of youth unemployment in 2010 (during the recession) and the relative change rate in youth unemployment (2005/2006-2009/2010) were regressed on smoking and SEP inequalities in smoking in 2010, respectively. Youth unemployment rates were not significantly associated with overall smoking in adolescents. A higher absolute youth unemployment rate in 2010 related to lower likelihoods of smoking among middle (OR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.98-0.99) and low affluent adolescents (OR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.98-0.99) compared to high affluent adolescents. In contrast, an increase in youth unemployment (2005/2006-2009/2010) was not associated with overall likelihoods of smoking and inequalities in smoking. Our findings indicate that an increase in youth unemployment was not related to smoking and smoking inequalities. However, higher absolute levels of youth unemployment are related to lower likelihoods of smoking in lower SEP adolescents. Thus, smoking among vulnerable groups is more linked to the overall insecure circumstances and the affordability of cigarettes rather than to the economic recession itself. Economic recessions have often led to increases in adult and youth unemployment rates. Conflicting evidence has been reported on smoking behavior among adults during times of economic downturn. This study examines for the first

  17. Inequalities at the Starting Gate: Cognitive and Noncognitive Skills Gaps between 2010-2011 Kindergarten Classmates. Report

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Garcia, Emma

    2015-01-01

    Inequalities in education outcomes such as test scores or degree attainment have been at the center of education policy debates for decades. Indeed, the first seminal national report on the state of U.S. education--the 1966 Coleman Report--examined some of these inequalities 50 years ago. Since then, researchers have examined performance gaps by…

  18. Changes in income inequality and the health of immigrants

    PubMed Central

    Hamilton, Tod G.; Kawachi, Ichiro

    2016-01-01

    Research suggests that income inequality is inversely associated with health. This association has been documented in studies that utilize variation in income inequality across countries or across time from a single country. The primary criticism of these approaches is their inability to account for potential confounders that are associated with income inequality. This paper uses variation in individual experiences of income inequality among immigrants within the United States (U.S.) to evaluate whether individuals who moved from countries with greater income inequality than the U.S. have better health than those who migrated from countries with less income in equality than the U.S. Utilizing individual-level (March Current Population Survey) and country-level data (the United Nations Human Development Reports), we show that among immigrants who have resided in the U.S. between 6 and 20 years, self-reported health is more favorable for the immigrants in the former category (i.e., greater income inequality) than those in the latter (i.e., lower income inequality). Results also show that self-reported health is better among immigrants from more developed countries and those who have more years of education, are male, and are married. PMID:23352417

  19. Inequality and Educational Investment in Thai Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pattaravanich, Umaporn; Williams, Lindy B.; Lyson, Thomas A.; Archavanitkul, Kritaya

    2005-01-01

    In this paper we examine differences in upper secondary school attendance among subgroups of the population in Thailand. We ascertain where inequalities continue to exist and where they have been mediated. We analyze data from samples of the 1990 and 2000 Thai censuses. We find that the gender gap favoring boys has closed at the national level and…

  20. Inequality for All: The Challenge of Unequal Opportunity in American Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schmidt, William; McKnight, Curtis

    2012-01-01

    "Inequality for All" makes an important contribution to current debates about economic inequalities and the growing achievement gap, particularly in mathematics and science education. The authors argue that the greatest source of variation in opportunity to learn is not between local communities, or even schools, but between classrooms.…