Introduction

During the last decade intensive discussion about the inequality of health chances has taken place in the sociology of health. Broad empirical evidence about the correlation between several dimensions of social inequality and health exists, as we will show below. Among these dimensions, education is of substantial interest in itself, but also for its relevance to occupational positions and income. We will thus discuss theories that explain which social mechanisms may be responsible for the health-determining effects of education. As research in the sociology of health has so far ignored the macro-context of educational systems, we will expand the discussion by applying these approaches. We will refer to existing branches of research that have not yet been connected. The research about educational systems analyses the way that educational systems reproduce inequalities of education. What does this mean for the social inequality of health? We examine, which mechanisms might be responsible for the correlation of education and health or well-being. An important group of social mechanisms are competencies, abilities and cognitions, or the ‘health literacy’. Does health literacy help people to determine the appropriate health-related behaviour and lifestyle? Are personality traits related to education and health? Numerous studies provide evidence that education is the most important prerequisite for successful labour market integration in modern societies. Exclusion from the labour market, precarious employment or low pay may result in harmful living conditions or mental stress that may be the cause of poor health. The resources that are provided by work and employment are thus another mechanism that is relevant to health. This chapter summarises the research about the correlation between education and health and the mechanisms that might explain this correlation. The concluding section includes thoughts about how educational achievements and conditions in the educational system may influence the educational inequality of health. The chapter will finish by identifying open research questions and providing a basis for future comparative research on this topic.

Education and the health of individuals

There is a well-established correlation between educational achievements and health outcomes (such as various measures of morbidity and mortality); however, it is still unclear which social mechanisms are behind this relationship. The following section provides an overview of different theoretical approaches to explain those findings.