Work Disability is a Pain in the *****, Especially in England, the Netherlands, and the United States

41 Pages Posted: 26 Oct 2005

See all articles by James W. Banks

James W. Banks

Institute for Fiscal Studies; The University of Manchester

Arie Kapteyn

University of Southern California - Center for Economic and Social Research (CESR); IZA Institute of Labor Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

James P. Smith

RAND Corporation; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Arthur van Soest

Tilburg University; Netspar; RAND Corporation; Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: May 2005

Abstract

This paper investigates the role of pain in determining self-reported work disability in the U.S., the U.K. and The Netherlands. Even if identical questions are asked, cross-country differences in reported work disability remain substantial. In the U.S. and the Netherlands, respondent evaluations of work limitations of hypothetical persons described in pain vignettes are used to identify the extent to which differences in self-reports between countries or socio-economic groups are due to systematic variation in the response scales.

Keywords: Work limiting disability, Vignettes, Reporting bias

JEL Classification: J28, I12, C81

Suggested Citation

Banks, James W. and Kapteyn, Arie and Smith, James P. and van Soest, Arthur H. O. and van Soest, Arthur H. O., Work Disability is a Pain in the *****, Especially in England, the Netherlands, and the United States (May 2005). RAND Working Paper Series No. WR-280, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=825225 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.825225

James W. Banks (Contact Author)

Institute for Fiscal Studies ( email )

7 Ridgmount Street
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The University of Manchester

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Arie Kapteyn

University of Southern California - Center for Economic and Social Research (CESR) ( email )

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IZA Institute of Labor Economics

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National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) ( email )

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James P. Smith

RAND Corporation ( email )

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IZA Institute of Labor Economics ( email )

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Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Arthur H. O. van Soest

Tilburg University ( email )

P.O. Box 90153
Tilburg, DC Noord-Brabant 5000 LE
Netherlands

Netspar

P.O. Box 90153
Tilburg, 5000 LE
Netherlands

RAND Corporation ( email )

P.O. Box 2138
1776 Main Street
Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138
United States

Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

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