# The Effects of Job Loss on Health over Two Decades

> **NIH NIH R03** · UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS BOSTON · 2020 · $76,250

## Abstract

Project Summary
Job loss is a negative event that may have detrimental effects on individual health. While there
is a large body of literature showing that job loss is associated with poorer health, this body of
work is fraught with issues of causality and endogeneity. The proposed study uses a specific
and unique case of job loss in China to extend the literature on causal effects of job loss on
health – government-driven layoffs in state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in China. Because the
SOE layoffs are mostly induced by exogenous policy change, and not dictated by personal
performance or market competitions, this case provides a more exogenous case than general
layoffs in examining the causal effect. We will employ two datasets that complement each other
– a longitudinal dataset that spans over two decades (China Health and Nutrition Survey
(CHNS) 1993-2015), and a recent dataset with a retrospective life history survey (China Health,
Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) 2011-2018) for analysis. This project is significant in
that it improves our understanding of the short- and long-term effects of job loss on health, the
mechanisms of this relationship, and how such effects differ by gender, family contexts,
occupation prestige, and education levels of individuals. Additionally, it will identify the career
stages and economic contexts that further victimize job losers. By identifying the individuals who
are the hardest hit by job loss, the study will help policy makers effectively cushion the adverse
effect of job loss on health in the future. This is especially important in contemporary societies
where job stability has been declining. We will also be among the first to examine the long-term
effect of job loss on dementia among older adults.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10017822
- **Project number:** 5R03AG064265-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS BOSTON
- **Principal Investigator:** Qian Song
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $76,250
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-15 → 2022-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10017822

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10017822, The Effects of Job Loss on Health over Two Decades (5R03AG064265-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10017822. Licensed CC0.

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