Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic considerably impacted the lives of European citizens. This study aims to provide a nuanced picture of well-being patterns during the pandemic across Europe with a special focus on relevant socio-economic sub-groups. This observational study uses data from a repeated, cross-sectional, representative population survey with nine waves of data from seven European countries from April 2020 to January 2022. The analysis sample contains a total of 25,062 individuals providing 64,303 observations. Well-being is measured using the ICECAP-A, a multi-dimensional instrument for approximating capability well-being. Average levels of ICECAP-A index values and sub-dimension scores were calculated across waves, countries, and relevant sub-groups. In a fixed effects regression framework, associations of capability well-being with COVID-19 incidence, mortality, and the stringency of the imposed lockdown measures were estimated. Denmark, the Netherlands, and France experienced a U-shaped pattern in well-being (lowest point in winter 2020/21), while well-being in the UK, Germany, Portugal, and Italy followed an M-shape, with increases after April 2020, a drop in winter 2020, a recovery in the summer of 2021, and a decline in winter 2021. However, observed average well-being reductions were generally small. The largest declines were found in the well-being dimensions attachment and enjoyment and among individuals with a younger age, a financially unstable situation, and lower health. COVID-19 mortality was consistently negatively associated with capability well-being and its sub-dimensions, while stringency and incidence rate were generally not significantly associated with well-being. Further investigation is needed to understand underlying mechanisms of presented patterns.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 563-578 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| Journal | European Journal of Health Economics |
| Volume | 25 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Early online date | 6 Jul 2023 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jun 2024 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This project has received funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) under project number 466310,982 and from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 721402. The work was supported by funding under the Excellence Strategy by the German federal and state governments, as well as by the University of Hamburg, Erasmus University Rotterdam, and Nova School of Business & Economics Lisbon—Chair BPI | “Fundacão La Caixa” on Health Economics. The funders had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication. All authors had full access to all of the data in the study and take responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, The Author(s).
