Has the association between low school performance and the risk of disability benefit due to mental disorders become stronger over time?

Abstract

Background The proportion of young adults on disability benefits due to mental disorders has increased in Europe since the early 2000’s. Poor educational achievement is a risk factor for disability benefits due to mental disorders in early adulthood, yet no study has examined whether this association has become stronger over time. Methods All residents of Stockholm County at the time of graduation from compulsory education between 2000 and 2007 ( N = 169,125) were followed prospectively for recipient of disability benefits due to a mental disorder from 2003 to 2011. Information about the study participants was obtained by linkage of national registers. Low school performance in the last year of compulsory school was defined as having a merit rating corresponding to the lowest quintile. The association between school performance and disability benefits was examined using Cox proportional hazards models. Results Low school performers had a greater risk of disability benefits due to mental disorders during early adulthood, as compared to their better performing counterparts, and this association was more pronounced for the more recent graduation cohorts (OR = 1.12, 95% CI 1.08–1.16). Conclusions The association between low school performance and the risk of disability benefits due to mental disorders seems to become stronger during the first decade of the twenty-first century. It is plausible that this trend indicates an increased vulnerability of poor school performers to exclusion from the labor market. Prevention of school failure and adjustment of the labour market to individual variability in academic performance appear to be critical approaches to counteract this trend. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12889-019-6703-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Academic performance, subsequent socioeconomic status and suicide attempt in adulthood: path analyses on Swedish cohort data

“…However, in a recent Swedish study of associations between academic performance and disability benefits due to mental health disorders in young adulthood, the association increased across graduation years 2000–2007. 10 Thus, academic performance seems to have increased in importance for mental health outcomes even in recent years.…”

“…Nor has it been studied whether the association between poor academic performance and later risk of suicidal behaviour has increased over time, though there is some evidence on other mental health outcomes. 10 The educational and labour market structure in many high-income countries, including Sweden, 11 has changed over recent decades, and the proportion of jobs with low educational demands has diminished. People with weak academic performance and low level of education may thus have become an increasingly disadvantaged group.…”