Financial Strain Moderates Genetic Influences on Self-Reported Health: Support for Social Compensation Model

The existence of genetic influences on both health and SES attainment suggests that GE interplay plays a role in SES-health associations. Adverse environments raise the risk of disease for everyone, but various models of GE... [ view full abstract ]

The existence of genetic influences on both health and SES attainment suggests that GE interplay plays a role in SES-health associations. Adverse environments raise the risk of disease for everyone, but various models of GE interplay predict that some genotypes are more vulnerable to adversity than others (diathesis-stress), enriched environments prevent the expression of an underlying genetic vulnerability (social compensation), or genetic factors are minimized in adverse environments and maximized in favorable ones (social enhancement). Differential susceptibility models propose that specific genotypes might be more responsive to the social environment at both positive and negative extremes. Nine of the 15 twin studies of adult development and aging that are part of the IGEMS consortium included items assessing financial strain as well as subjective health, representing 10,756 individuals. The sample was 55% women, included 3185 MZ twins and 5228 DZ twins, and age ranged from 24 to 98. A factor model was used to create a harmonized measure of financial strain across studies and items: extent to which money covers needs, difficulty in paying monthly bills, economic situation compared to others, and whether there is money for extras. Twin analysis of genetic and environmental variance for self-rated health incorporating age and financial strain as continuous moderators and sex as a dichotomous moderator indicated significant financial strain moderation of genetic influences on self-rated health. Genetic variance increased as financial strain increased, matching the predictions of the diathesis-stress and social comparison models for components of variance.