Citation
Blanchflower, David G.; Van Landeghem, Bert; & Oswald, Andrew J. (2009). Imitative Obesity and Relative Utility. Journal of the European Economic Association, 7, 528-538.Abstract
If human beings care about their relative weight, a form of imitative obesity can emerge (in which people subconsciously keep up with the weight of the Joneses). Using Eurobarometer data on 29 countries, this paper provides cross-sectional evidence that overweight perceptions and dieting are influenced by a person's relative BMI, and longitudinal evidence from the German Socioeconomic Panel that well-being is influenced by relative BMI. Highly educated people see themselves as fatter—at any given actual weight—than those with low education. These results should be treated cautiously, and fixed-effects estimates are not always well determined, but there are grounds to take seriously the possibility of socially contagious obesity. (JEL: D1, I12, I31)
URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/JEEA.2009.7.2-3.528Reference Type
Journal ArticleYear Published
2009Journal Title
Journal of the European Economic AssociationAuthor(s)
Blanchflower, David G.Van Landeghem, Bert
Oswald, Andrew J.