Monetary valuation of mutual help-related subjective health and health losses

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K01739
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 07050:Public economics and labor economics-related
• Research Institution: Seinan Gakuin University
• Principal Investigator: KUMAGAI Narimasa 西南学院大学, 経済学部, 教授 (80330679)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 西村 周三 京都先端科学大学, 経済経営学部, 教授 (10027576)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 高血圧 / 受診の継続 / 平均治療効果 / Physician visits / Well-being valuation / Work-to-family conflict

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of changes in the unpaid household responsibilities and physician visits on subjective health using national longitudinal data, and to examine measures to correct health disparities due to socioeconomic factors. First, using the Japanese Life course Panel Survey - a Middle aged panel (JLPS-M) of the University of Tokyo, I focused on the intra-household distribution of unpaid work among middle-aged women and assessed the health losses of Japanese adult men and women in monetary terms. Second, I used data drawn from the Longitudinal Survey of Middle-Aged and Elderly People conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and examined the effect of outpatient visits on patients' subjective health and assessed the causal effect of physician visits on the health of hypertensive patients.

Free Research Field

医療経済学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究は、これまでの国内外の研究の延長線上で新たな知見を与えた。パネルデータ分析の結果に基づいて、(1) 有業女性の健康を維持して生活満足度の低下を避けるためには、高いレベルの仕事と家庭の葛藤を解消しようと家事労働を夫が分担することが肝要であることを示し、(2) 糖尿病、低学歴、喫煙習慣のある高血圧患者に対して、連続した受診を促すことが必要であることを明らかにした。ほとんどの国において高血圧患者の血圧管理率は低いことが観察されており、高血圧患者の血圧コントロールを強化して通院の効果を高めるうえで、上記の知見は有用と思われる。