Did the Finnish depression of the early 1990s have a silver lining? The effect of unemployment on long-term physical activity



: Salokangas Henri, Böckerman Petri, Huikari Sanna, Korhonen Marko, Korpelainen Raija, Svento Rauli

Publisher: Elsevier

: 2022

: Economics and Human Biology

: ECONOMICS & HUMAN BIOLOGY

: ECON HUM BIOL

:  101139

: 46

: 9

: 1570-677X

: 1873-6130

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ehb.2022.101139(external)

: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ehb.2022.101139(external)

: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/175536161(external)


This paper studies the impact of long-term unemployment on physical activity. We examined the effects 6 and 15 years following a severe business cycle downturn in Finland over the period 1991-1994. The study sample comprised residents of Northern Finland. The unemployed individuals were 23-26 years old during the downturn. Physical activity, measured by MET minutes and meeting WHO guidelines, was higher 15 years later among those people who experienced the longest periods of unemployment in 1991-1994. Physical activity was somewhat lower among people with relatively shorter periods of unemployment.

Last updated on 2024-26-11 at 18:03