Exploring the relationship between time preference, body fatness, and educational attainment. (June 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Brown, Heather; Biosca, Olga
• Is Part Of: Social science & medicine. Volume 158(2016)
• Page Start: 75
• Page End: 85
• Publication Date: 2016-06
• Subjects: UK -- BMI -- WC -- PBF -- Objective weight measures -- Time preference -- Education -- Multivariate regression; Social medicine -- Periodicals; Medical anthropology -- Periodicals; Public health -- Periodicals; Psychology -- Periodicals; Medicine -- Periodicals; Medicine -- Periodicals; Médecine sociale -- Périodiques; Anthropologie médicale -- Périodiques; Santé publique -- Périodiques; Psychologie -- Périodiques; Médecine -- Périodiques; Electronic journals; 362.105
• DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.04.016
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0277-9536

Abstract

Abstract: Obesity is a global health concern. This is the first study to explore if the relationship between body fatness and time preference is consistent across different ways of objectively measuring body fatness. Our second aim is to explore if there are differential associations between educational attainment and being a saver to determine if education can be used to change saving behaviour and subsequently body fatness. This paper uses data on 15, 591 individuals from 2010/2011 of the Understanding Society Survey (UK) to explore the relationship between time preference, measured as being a saver and three objective measures of body fatness: BMI, percent body fatness (PBF), and waist circumference (WC). Our findings show that there is a negative relationship between the three measures of body fatness and being a saver. The strongest relationship is found for WC and being a saver for both genders. Overall, a stronger association is found for women than men. Our results suggest that differential effects by educational attainment can be found in the relationship between being a saver and body fatness. Educational interventions to improve savings behaviour and subsequently obesity may be more effective for women with lower levels of education. Highlights: Explore association between being a saver and three objective measures of body fatness. Negative association between being a saver and all three measures of body fatness. Stronger negative association between being a saver and body fatness for women. Largest association found between waist circumference and being a saver for both genders. Differential effects of education level and being a saver on body fatness.