TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2024//
TI  - The impact of minimum wage increase on suicidal ideation in South Korea: a difference-in-differences analysis using nationally representative panel data
JO  - Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology
A1  - Kim, Chungah
A1  - Bai, Yihong
A1  - Dusing, Gabriel John
A1  - Nielsen, Andrew
A1  - Chum, Antony
SP  - ePub
EP  - ePub
VL  - ePub
IS  - ePub
N2  - BACKGROUND: South Korea had the highest suicide rates in the OECD and one of the largest (16.4%) increases in the minimum wage in 2018. Prior studies have provided evidence that increases in minimum wage reduce suicide rates in the population, but no study examined the effects of the policy change on individual-level suicidal behaviour. <br><br>METHODS: Our study sample was built using the 2015-2019 waves of the Korean Welfare Panel Survey, a population-representative longitudinal survey. The sample consisted of 5146 participants, including those earning above minimum wage (control) and minimum wage earners (treatment) based on their 2018/19 earnings. The outcome of the study was suicidal ideation, which is an important precursor to other suicidal behaviours, and was captured using self-reported measures. We examined the impact of the 2018 minimum wage hike in Korea on suicidal ideation, using a difference-in-differences design. <br><br>RESULTS: The minimum wage increase was associated with a 1.6% points reduction (95% CI: -2.8% to -0.5%) in self-reported suicidal ideation. Stronger policy effects were shown among women and older age groups. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates that public policies employing a population-based approach, such as increasing minimum wages, could serve as an effective intervention to mitigate suicidal ideation among low-income workers.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0933-7954
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00127-024-02646-w
ID  - ref1
ER  -