Celidoni, Martina, Costa-Font, Joan ORCID: 0000-0001-7174-7919 and Salmasi, Luca (2023) Mobility restrictions and alcohol use during lockdown: "a still and dry pandemic for the many"? Economics and Human Biology, 50. ISSN 1570-677X
Text (Costa-Font_mobility-restrictions-and-alcohol-use-during-lockdown--published)
- Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (2MB) |
Abstract
Unexpected mobility disruptions during lockdown during the first wave of COVID-19 became ’tipping points’ with the potential to alter pre-pandemic routines sensitive to socialisation. This paper investigates the impact of lockdown exposure on alcohol consumption. We document two findings using information from the Google Mobility Report and longitudinal data from the Understanding Society survey (UKHLS) in the United Kingdom. First, we find a sharp reduction in both actual mobility and alcohol use (consistent with a ”still and dry pandemic for the many” hypothesis). However, we document an increase in alcohol use among heavy drinkers, implying a split behavioural response to COVID-19 mobility restrictions based on alcohol use prior to the pandemic. Second, using the predictions of the prevalence-response elasticity theory, we find that the pandemic's reduction in social contacts is responsible for a 2.8 percentage point reduction in drinking among men.
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Official URL: | https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/economics-an... |
Additional Information: | © 2023 Elsevier B.V. |
Divisions: | Health Policy |
Subjects: | R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology |
JEL classification: | I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare and Poverty > I30 - General I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I1 - Health > I18 - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health |
Date Deposited: | 22 Jun 2023 10:12 |
Last Modified: | 16 Sep 2024 06:10 |
URI: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/119467 |
Actions (login required)
View Item |