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Editorial
. 2013 Sep 10;81(11):942-3.
doi: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e3182a43ea7. Epub 2013 Aug 29.

Migraine and the social selection vs causation hypotheses: a question larger than either/or?

B Lee Peterlin  1 , Ann I Scher
Affiliations
Editorial

Migraine and the social selection vs causation hypotheses: a question larger than either/or?

B Lee Peterlin et al. Neurology. .

Abstract

For decades, the question of social selection vs social causation has been raised by public health researchers and social scientists to explain the association between socioeconomic factors and mood disorders.(1,2) The social selection or "downward drift" theory postulates that the disease itself limits an individual's educational and occupational achievements, leading to a lower socioeconomic status (SES). In contrast, the social causation hypothesis suggests that factors associated with low SES (e.g., stressful life events, poor health care access) increase the likelihood of disease onset or prolonged disease duration.(3,4) Simply stated, the end result of each hypothesis is as follows:

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References

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