Income gradient in health-related quality of life — the role of social networking time

BACKGROUND: Widening social class discrepancies in health persist in the United States. Although the relationship between social class and health has been well illustrated, the pathways through which social class influences the distribution of health remain unidentified. This study is designed to analyze the income-health relationship by examining the role of social networking time. METHODS: A nationwide sample from the General Social Survey of the United States is adopted for the statistical analysis. The Healthy Days Measures developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are used to evaluate health-related quality of life in the general population. Social networking time is measured through the number of social evenings respondents spend with neighbors. Individuals’ inflation-adjusted family income is used to indicate their income. The relationships between income, social networking time and health-related quality of life are calculated through multiple linear regressions, and the mediation effects of social networking time are further tested by the Sobel test with bootstrapping. RESULTS: People with a lower income tend to spend more time socializing with their neighbors than those with a higher income. Income is positively associated with health-related quality of life. Respondents who engage more frequently in neighborhood socializing report poorer health-related quality of life. The reproduction of the income gradient in health-related quality of life through social networking time mainly persists in mental health aspects. CONCLUSIONS: This study verifies the positive association between income and health-related quality of life. The results show that people’s network ties are affected by their income and confirm the role of social networking time in the reproduction of the income gradient in health-related quality of life.