Michael W. Kraus|Nancy E. Adler|Teh Way David Chen
Is the association of subjective SES and self-rated health confounded by negative mood? An experimental approach.
University of California, San Francisco
lower subjective socioeconomic status sss consistently shows associations poorer health strongest relationships emerging global selfrated health though often interpreted reflecting impact low sss health association could also arise confounding sss negative affect research sought determine negative affect confounds alternatively causal pathway linking sss selfrated healththreehundred adult participantsrecruited throughout united stateswere randomized experience sadness shame neutral mood induction wrote visualized particularly emotionally evocative event participants subsequently completed measures sss selfrated health depression negative moodconsistent predictions neither sss scores association sss selfrated health depression chronic negative affect differed mood induction condition controlling demographic factors covary sss eg age gender education income moreover chronic negative affect partially explained relationship sss selfrated health independent manipulated moodthese findings support utility measurement sss provide evidence suggesting chronic negative affect likely mediator sss association global health rather confounder