The Relationship between Subjective Socioeconomic Status and Health in Adults with and without Intellectual Disability

Background: This study investigated if subjective socioeconomic status (SSS) is related to self-rated health (SRH) and objective indicators of health in people with and without intellectual disability. Methods: Participants were 217 adults with, and 2350 adults without intellectual disability in Jersey. In the intellectual disability sample, 85 (39.2%) participants consented independently, while 132 (60.8%) participants consented through proxy procedures. The MacArthur Scale of Subjective Social Status was used to measure SSS. The Euro-Qol EQ-5D-5L and a five-point scale ranging from poor to excellent health were used to measure SRH. Results: Higher SSS and younger age were predictors of better SRH for the proxy-report intellectual disability group. Being employed was associated with higher EQ-5D-5L index values for all intellectual disability groups. Conclusion: As SSS was only related to SRH in the proxy intellectual disability group, further research with a larger intellectual disability sample is needed to explore its utility further.