Sick listing—Partly a family phenomenon?

Being sick listed is not always identical to being ill; it is rather a behaviour associated with illness. In this paper we have analysed whether there is a higher risk of becoming sick listed if a family member has been sick listed earlier—partly a family phenomenon. This aspect of sick listing has never been investigated before. Our results indicate that an individual's risk of being sick listed in 2007 was higher if he/she had family members who had been sick listed in 2006. This may be a sign for an existing “sick listing culture”—social norms within families.

Research highlights▶ There is a higher risk of being sick listed if a family member has been sick listed earlier. ▶ This may be a sign of an existing “sick listing culture”—social norms within families. ▶ We use Swedish register data.