C-Reactive Protein among Older Adults during the Recession: Does Economic Adversity Get Under the Skin?

• In Event: 499 - Section on Aging and the Life Course Roundtable Session.
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 06. Work, Retirement, and Economic Security

Abstract

The economic recession that began in late 2007 and ended in mid-2009 has had a harmful effect on the financial well-being of older adults, but growing research indicates that the impact of the recession extended well beyond income and assets to affect mental health. Despite this increased focus on health, there has been relatively little attention on the extent to which the recession has influenced physical or biological health. This study draws on 5,412 respondents from the 2008 Health and Retirement Study to examine multiple measures of economic adversity during the Great Recession. Guided by cumulative inequality theory, this research poses two main research questions: Does economic adversity predict higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) during the economic decline? If so, do subjective and objective evaluations of economic adversity exert distinct effects on CRP? Findings from ordinary least squares regression models reveal that subjective evaluations of economic adversity were significantly associated with higher CRP, whereas objective measures were not. Building on prior research, this study provides evidence of the power of subjective evaluations for health, and further evidence of the impact of the Great Recession on older adults.

Authors

• Lindsay R. Wilkinson, Baylor University

• Jeffrey A Tamburello, Baylor University