Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research - Research Publications
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ItemRe-engaging with survey non-respondents: Evidence from three household panels(Wiley, 2014)Previous research into the correlates and determinants of non‐response in longitudinal surveys has focused exclusively on why it is that respondents at one survey wave choose not to participate at future waves. This is very understandable if non‐response is always an absorbing state, but in many longitudinal surveys, and certainly most household panels, this is not so. Indeed, in these surveys it is normal practice to attempt to make contact with many non‐respondents at the next wave. This study differs from previous research by examining re‐engagement with previous wave non‐respondents. Drawing on data from three national household panels it is found that the re‐engagement decision is indeed distinctly different from the decision about continued participation. Further, these differences have clear implications for the way that panel surveys should be administered given the desire to enhance overall response rates.
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ItemPanel Conditioning and Subjective Well-being(SPRINGER, 2014-05)
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ItemA Demonstration of Set-Points for Subjective Wellbeing(Springer Nature, 2014-02-15)This paper presents evidence for the existence of ‘set-points’ for subjective wellbeing. Our results derive from a 10-year longitudinal study in which subjective wellbeing has been measured using a single question of general life satisfaction. The process of data analysis is driven by logic based on the theory of subjective wellbeing homeostasis. This analysis involves the iterative elimination of raw data, from 7,356 individual respondents, based on confidence limits. All results are projected onto a 0–100 point scale. We demonstrate evidence for the existence of set-points lying between 71 and 90 points, with an average set-point-range of 18–20 points for each person. The implications and limitations of these findings are discussed.
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ItemWork-Related Training and the Probability of Transitioning from Non-Permanent to Permanent Employment(Wiley, 2016-01-01)It is widely believed that work-related training increases a worker's probability of moving up the job-quality ladder. This is usually couched in terms of effects on wages, but it has also been argued that training increases the probability of moving from non-permanent forms of employment to more permanent employment. This hypothesis is tested using nationally representative panel data for Australia, a country where the incidence of non-permanent employment, and especially casual employment, is high by international standards. While a positive association between participation in work-related training and the subsequent probability of moving from either casual or fixed-term contract employment to permanent employment is observed among men, this is shown to be driven not by a causal impact of training on transitions but by differences between those who do and do not receive training, that is selection bias.
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ItemAgeing, Death and Life Satisfaction: Evidence from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey(Wiley, 2016-12-01)Does subjective well-being rise or fall with age or are most people, especially those in old age, sufficiently resilient that levels of subjective well-being are very stable over the life course? This article uses longitudinal data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey and finds that self-reported life satisfaction among a large sample of Australians does vary over time. Nevertheless, over much of adulthood—between ages 25 and 65 years—the range in this variation is very small. As people enter old age, however, life satisfaction falls quite sharply. Furthermore, this fall does not appear to be entirely driven by mortality, with the decline beginning many years prior to death.
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ItemSubjective wellbeing: why weather matters(WILEY, 2016-01)Summary The paper reports results from the first ever study of the effect of short-term weather and long-term climate on self-reported life satisfaction that uses longitudinal data. We find robust evidence that day-to-day weather variation impacts self-reported life satisfaction. Utilizing two sources of variation in the cognitive complexity of satisfaction questions, we present evidence that weather effects arise because of the cognitive challenge of reporting life satisfaction. We do not detect a relationship between long-term climate and self-reported life satisfaction by using an individual fixed effects specification, which identifies climate impacts through individuals moving location.
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ItemSickness absence and mental health: evidence from a nationally representative longitudinal survey(SCANDINAVIAN JOURNAL WORK ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH, 2016-05)OBJECTIVES: Previous studies have consistently reported evidence of large significant associations between measures of psychological health and sickness absence. Some of this association, however, may be confounded by relevant covariates that have not been controlled. By using data with repeated observations from the same individuals, this study aimed to quantify the bias due to unobserved characteristics that are time invariant. METHODS: Longitudinal data from the Household, Income, and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey were used to estimate negative binomial regression models of the number of annual paid sickness absence days. Observations spanning the period 2005-2012, and covering all employed persons aged 15-64 years, were used (56 348 observations from 13 622 individuals). RESULTS: Significant associations between the number of paid sickness absence days taken each year and scores on the mental health subscale of the SF-36 (MHI-5) were found. Inclusion of correlated random effects (which effectively control for unobserved person-specific factors that do not vary over time), however, resulted in a marked decline in the magnitude of this association. For persons with severe depressive symptoms (MHI-5 ≤52), the estimated incidence rate ratios were in the range 1.13-1.14 for men and 1.10-1.12 for women. CONCLUSIONS: Poor mental health is a risk factor affecting work attendance, but the magnitude of this effect, at least in a country where the rate of sickness absence is relatively low, is modest.
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ItemMental health and productivity at work: Does what you do matter?(Elsevier, 2017-06)
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ItemA Family Affair: Job Loss and the Mental Health of Spouses and Adolescents(Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne, 2014)