Mental health effects of education

Abstract

We analyze the role of education as a determinant of mental health. To do this, we leverage the age-specific exposure to an educational reform as an instrument for years of education and find that the treated cohorts gained more education. This increase in education had an effect on mental health more than 2 decades later. An extra year of education led to a lower likelihood of reporting any symptoms related to depression (11.3%) and anxiety (9.8%). More educated people also suffered less severe symptoms - depression (6.1%) and anxiety (5.6%). These protective effects are higher among women and rural residents. The effects of education on mental well-being that we document are potentially mediated through better physical health, improved health behavior and knowledge, and an increase in women's empowerment.