The effect of unemployment on the smoking behavior of couples.
Although unemployment likely entails various externalities, research examining its spillover effects on spouses is scarce. This is the first paper to estimate effects of unemployment on the smoking behavior of both spouses. Using German Socio-Economic Panel data, we combine matching and difference-in-differences estimation, employing the post-double-selection method for control variable selection via Lasso regressions. One spouse's unemployment increases both spouses' smoking probability and intensity. Smoking relapses and decreased smoking cessation drive the effects. Effects are stronger if the partner already smokes and if the male partner becomes unemployed. Of several mechanisms discussed, we identify smoking to cope with stress as relevant.
['Everding|Jakob|J|0000-0002-1258-220X', 'Marcus|Jan|J|0000-0001-9407-6660']
D000328:Adult D005260:Female D005858:Germany D006801:Humans D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D012309:Risk-Taking D012907:Smoking D018454:Spouses D013315:Stress, Psychological D014478:Unemployment
unemployment smoking spillover effects post-double-selection method job loss risky health behaviors