Abstract
Survey reports of the incidence of chronic conditions are considered by many researchers to be more objective, and thus preferable, measures of unobserved health status than self-assessed measures of global well being. In this paper we evaluate this hypothesis by attempting to validate these “objective, self-reported” measures of health. Our analysis makes use of a unique data set that matches a variety of self-reports of health with respondents’ medical records. We find that these measures are subject to considerable response error resulting in large attenuation biases when they are used as explanatory variables.
- Received November 2002.
- Accepted July 2003.
This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.
Log in using your username and password
Purchase access
In this issue
Jump to section
Related Articles
Cited By...
- Knowledge about benefits and risks of undergoing cataract surgery among cataract patients in Southern China
- Longitudinal examination of temporality in the association between chronic disease diagnosis and changes in work status and hours worked
- Insomnia and its association with hypertension in a community-based population in China: a cross-sectional study
- The Health Consequences of Retirement
- Does Racism Affect Health? Evidence from the United States and the United Kingdom
- Child Health and Young Adult Outcomes
- Partially Identifying Treatment Effects with an Application to Covering the Uninsured