Laboratory

Max Planck – University of Helsinki Center for Social Inequalities in Population Health (MaxHel)

Project

Family

Conducted by Mikko Myrskylä; Pekka Martikainen, Mine Kühn, Philipp Dierker

Detailed Description

Studies on social inequalities in health have tended to focus on the role of working-age adult characteristics and risk factors, but interest has increasingly extended to the entire life course. According to life-course theory and a growing body of empirical evidence, family background, early-life health, as well as educational, labor market and family choices in adulthood all contribute to inequalities in later health and mortality, poverty, and social relations. The relative contribution of these life-course processes may change over time. For example, previous research on childhood conditions and health in later life relied largely on cohorts born in the early 20^th century when infectious diseases, poor nutrition and hygiene, and material hardship were still relatively common. Given the subsequent demographic, social, and economic changes, the findings obtained from these studies may no longer apply. Moreover, many earlier studies, based on small regional samples with considerable loss to follow-up, are restricted in terms of generalizability and do not allow for contextual variation by family or macro-level characteristics.

In addition to gradual societal transformations, potential drivers of trends in social inequalities in health and mortality include macro-level social shocks, such as economic fluctuations. European societies experienced major economic fluctuations over the past 50 years, with significant busts in the 1970s, 1990s, and 2008. Significant economic transformations may follow the current COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing war in Ukraine. However, potential changes in resilience to the effects of economic change remain unclear. In particular, most of the evidence on the effects of economic cycles is based on aggregate data, and there is relatively little evidence on differential effects according to individual social characteristics and the family context.

Family is the key social institution that shapes individual life-course processes and protects from, moderates, or exacerbates the health effects of life-course events and structural shocks. Family and kin networks may be beneficial as important sources for social and emotional support, financial resources, information and knowledge; and the consequences of life-course events may propagate through the network of individuals within a family with lasting effects. Increasing family diversity and changing family formation dynamics underscore the role of family as an important lens through which changing health inequalities must be analyzed. From a methodological perspective, longitudinal data on family and kin networks are highly valuable as they allow for various within-individual, within-family, and within-kin designs that can improve the identification of causal associations. The Nordic countries have been forerunners in family change and in the adoption of new family formation patterns, with other high-income countries following suit. This makes analyses of Finland forward looking, with results that can inform future trends in other countries.

Research Keywords:

Aging, Mortality and Longevity, Family Behavior, Health Care, Public Health, Medicine, and Epidemiology, Intergenerational Relationships, Life Course

Region keywords:

Finland

Publications

Kistler, V.; Sieber, S.; Cheval, B.; van der Linden, B. W. A.; Jungo, K. T.; Jackisch, J.; Ihle, A.; Carmeli, C.; Courvoisier, D. S.; Lagger, G.; Cullati, S.:

Childhood misfortunes and metabolic syndrome in old age: European prospective cohort study

Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases. forthcoming. (2026)