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Persistence of Social and Health Problems in Denmark, 1948 to 1979
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10064 |
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Section : |
MODERN THOUGHT
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Date : |
4 / 1986 |
3,693 Words |
| Author
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Tavs Folmer Andersen
Tavs Folmer Andersen is a professor at the University of
Copenhagen, Institute of Social Medicine. |
Now that Western societies suffer from the consequences of economic recession, a propensity toward nostalgic reviews of the "welfare era" tends to arise. Whereas critical analysis of social and health problems following current cutbacks on government programs is critical, it is nevertheless relevant to insist upon a realistic assessment of the previous achievement of the "welfare state" in more prosperous times. Cross-sectional studies have documented the differential distribution of morbidity and mortality, social problems, delinquency and unemployment among subgroups of the Danish population. In the present study the longitudinal aspects of such problems are analyzed by following a cohort through three decades from 1948 to 1979. More specifically, the study is based on 1112 children from Copenhagen, all members of the post-war "welfare generation," who grew up during the most flourishing period of the Danish "welfare state."
A few characteristics of Danish society will be described initially. Denmark is a relatively affluent society: in 1978 the Danish gross national per capita income was $11,169, whereas the comparable figure for the United States was $9,685. Danish public expenditures amounted to 51.2 percent of the GNP, while the fraction was 33.8 percent in the United States. This means that Danish per capita public expenditures in 1978 were $5,719 compared to $3,274 in the United States. Out of this amount the Danish government spent $784 per capita on education, $619 on health care and $2,133 on various social welfare services where defense expenditures amounted to no more than $252 per capita. Furthermore, when compared to the United States, Denmark is characterized by a relatively even distribution of income and property.
The following study questions were examined:
(1) To what extent were unfavorable material conditions during childhood conducive to later accumulation of social and health problems in adulthood?
(2) Which specific aspects of early life experience, if any, were predictive for later occurrences of social and health problems in adult life?
Prospective longitudinal studies over extended periods of time are relatively seldom in the international literature. None of the reported studies seem to be directly comparable to the present study.
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