Understanding the role of welfare state characteristics for health and inequalities – an analytical review

BMC Public Health

Table 3 Descriptives of the Ferrera group

Descriptive measure	N (author)
Data used
- ESS	6 (Bambra et al., Bambra & Eikemo, Eikemo et al., Eikemo et al., Eikemo et al., Huijts)
- OECD, WHO, UN	3 (Richter*, Chuang et al., Karim et al.)
- SHARE	1 (Dragano)
- Human mortality database	1 (Popham*)
- EUROTHINE	1 (Bambra et al.*)
- Longitudinal data	1 (Dragano)
- EU-SILC	1 (Van der Wel*)
Health outcome
- Self-rated health	8 (Bambra et al., Bambra et al., Bambra & Eikemo, Eikemo et al., Eikemo et al., Eikemo et al., Richter, Huijts)
- Longstanding limiting illness	5 (Bambra et al., Bambra & Eikemo, Eikemo et al., Eikemo et al., van der Wel*)
- Infant mortality	3 (Chuang et al., Karim et al., Popham*)
- Life expectancy	3 (Chuang et al., Karim et al., Popham*)
- Depressive symptoms/depression	1 (Dragano)
- Psychosocial quality of work	1 (Dragano)
- Health complaints	1 (Richter*)
Health outcome
- Morbidity	16
- Mortality	6
Measures inequality (total)	8 (Bambra et al., Bambra et al., Bambra & Eikemo, Eikemo et al., Eikemo et al., Richter, van der Wel, Popham)
- Education	4 (Van der Wel, Eikemo, Bambra et al., Bambra et al.)
- SEP (social class)	1 (Richter*)
- Income	1 (Eikemo*)
- Employment status	1 (Bambra & Eikemo*)
- Popham measure (total inequality)	1 (Popham*)

Many articles examined multiple outcomes and hence the number of studies using the different health outcomes (22) is greater than the number of studies (n = 13).
Mortality measures include: life expectancy, infant mortality.
Morbidity measures include: self-rated health, limiting longstanding illness/morbidity/disability, depression/depressive symptoms, psychosocial quality of work, health complaints.
* = Studies with an inequalities perspective.

ISSN: 1471-2458