The Psychological Gains from COVID-19 Vaccination: Who Benefits the Most?
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Series
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Speaker(s)Manuel Bagues (Warwick University, United Kingdom)
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FieldEmpirical Microeconomics
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LocationErasmus University Rotterdam, Campus Woudestein, Polak 2-09
Rotterdam -
Date and time
December 12, 2022
11:30 - 12:30
Abstract
We estimate the impact of COVID-19 vaccination on psychological well-being using information from a large-scale panel survey representative of the UK population. Exploiting exogenous variation in the timing of vaccinations, we find that vaccination increases psychological well-being (GHQ-12) by 0.12 standard deviations, compensating for one-half of the deterioration in mental health caused by the pandemic. This improvement persists for at least two months, and is linked to higher engagement in social activities and a decrease in the self-reported likelihood of contracting COVID-19. The main beneficiaries are individuals who became mentally distressed during the pandemic, supporting their prioritization in vaccination rollouts. Joint paper with Velichka Dimitrova.
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