An Economic Analysis of the Determinants of Mental Health

This paper examines the socioeconomic determinants of mental health, using data from the 2010 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey. Existing studies have analyzed these relationships with a primary focus on overall health, concluding that discrimination, oppression, income inequality, and many other factors  increase or decrease the likelihood of mental illness. In my study, I use a model based on the Grossman health production function to focus on economic and social variables and their effect on several measures of mental health. I use representative data for the United States and for a subset of 15 states to analyze the effect of the various factors. Findings have potentially important economic and social implications, as the prevalence of mental illness in the United States is on the rise. With increasing financial costs and unemployment associated with mental health disorders, determining the socioeconomic factors most associated with mental health issues can therefore lead to recommendations on how to prevent or limit mental illness for the most affected subgroups.