Study shows how people’s work lives affect their parents’ mental health

Earlier this fall, researchers Sara Kalucza (Department of Sociology) and Anna Baranowska-Rataj, (Centre for Demographic and Ageing Research, CEDAR) at Umeå University, published a research article showing a connection between young people’s school-to-work transitions and parental health. This research was done by using data from CEDAR’s demographic database.

The implications of this study matter for public debates on the importance of offering young people a good start in life and making their future more secure.

Wanted to understand how different work experiences of young adults matter for the aging parents

In this study, the researchers used data from Västerbotten Invention Programme (VIP) a survey that provides detailed information about health in northern Sweden, to investigate the relationship between elders’ mental health and their children’s work opportunities.

“We compiled the overall trajectories of working lives of adult children between ages 20 to 29, and then linked that information with data on mental health of their parents, using the VIP database,” says Anna Baranowska-Rataj.

The results show a link between work disadvantages and poorer parental health

Anna Baranowska-Rataj.

Image Alekzandra Granath

The results can be summarised in two findings. The first is that more persistent forms of labour market disadvantage, such as prolonged unemployment, low-wage employment or health-related difficulties are indeed associated with poorer mental health among parents, compared to trajectories characterised by stable employment or those involving only short periods of unemployment on the way to finding a job.

The second finding is that there is a poorer mental health among parents with children who were born late in the parents’ lives, and who only started to settle down on the labour market during the period observed in our analysis.

The results were surprising

The researchers found the results of the study very interesting and somewhat surprising. Anna Baranowska-Rataj talks about the “common idea” that once children become adult, parental responsibilities end.

“One could argue that this should be particularly true in Sweden, a country recognised for its generous welfare state, which provides citizens with relatively robust social support and financial security. And yet, we find these clear correlations between adverse events in adult children’s lives and mental health of their parents. This suggests that even under societal conditions where we could least expect it, parents may be still concerned about what happens to their children, even after children reach adulthood and start their own independent life,” Baranowska-Rataj develops.

Important findings for future social policies to consider

Baranowska-Rataj thinks that these results are important to consider for long-term health benefits, both for the young adults, and the mental health of their parents.

“The implications of this study matter for public debates on the importance of offering young people a good start in life and making their future more secure. Our findings suggest that social policies targeting primarily younger generations may bring benefits for health and well-being among older age groups,” she concludes.