This article examines the issue of social inequality in terms of health, while citing the main results of an empirical study on the matter, which have been attained by means of analyzing data from the European social survey (ESS) for a few dozen countries, including Russia, together with statistical information on the state of their economy and welfare, utilizing a two-level linear and logistic modeling method. In different parts of Europe indexes of general wellbeing and the risk of developing depression differ quite drastically – in Russia, as is the case with most other relatively underdeveloped nations, the population’s health is markedly worse than in the most of the highly developed social democracies. These indexes significantly differ within the country as well – among people who occupy unequal positions within demographical and social structures. A natural discrepancy in health between elder and younger age groups is especially pronounced in underdeveloped countries, while in nations with a high level of prosperity and state social guarantees these age-related discrepancies are more or less evened out. Social capital and an individual’s mental strength play a crucial role in maintaining good health. Possessing psychosocial resources is beneficial to the health of those belonging to any given social stratum. However, in developed European countries this is mostly beneficial to the more vulnerable groups of lower social status. In developed European countries the health of said groups is negatively affected in no small part due to them experiencing relative deprivation, and the stress of social comparison to the prosperous majority. So this is not only due to a shortage of material resources or their limited access to high-quality medical services, as is the case in Russia and in underdeveloped European states. In well developed countries individual reserves and social bonds are especially important for the lower strata, in order for them to successfully overcome the negative impact of such strain on their health.

inequalities in health, demographic and social structure, social capital, psychological resources, European countries and Russia, two-level modeling.

Adler N. E., Boyce T., Chesney M. A., Cohen S., Folkman S., Kahn R. L., Syme S. L. Socioeconomic status and health. The challenge of the gradient. American Psychologist, 1994., vol. 49, no 1, pp. 15–24. DOI: 10.1037/0003-066X.49.1.15

Arcaya M. C., Arcaya A. L., Subramanian S. V. Inequalities in health: definitions, concepts, and theories. Global Health Action, 2015, vol. 8, no 1, article 27106. DOI: 10.3402/gha.v8.27106

Berkman L. F., Glass T. Social Integration, Social Networks, Social Support, and Health. Social epidemiology. Ed. by L. F. Berkman, I. Kawachi. Cambridge, Oxford University Press, 2000, pp. 137–173.

ESS Round 3: European Social Survey Round 3 Data. 2006. Data file edition 3.6. NSD – Norwegian Centre for Research Data, Norway – Data Archive and distributor of ESS data for ESS ERIC.

ESS Round 4: European Social Survey Round 4 Data. 2008. Data file edition 4.4. NSD – Norwegian Centre for Research Data, Norway – Data Archive and distributor of ESS data for ESS ERIC.

ESS Round 5: European Social Survey Round 5 Data. 2010. Data file edition 3.3. NSD – Norwegian Centre for Research Data, Norway – Data Archive and distributor of ESS data for ESS ERIC.

ESS Round 6: European Social Survey Round 6 Data. 2012. Data file edition 2.3. NSD – Norwegian Centre for Research Data, Norway – Data Archive and distributor of ESS data for ESS ERIC.

ESS Round 7: European Social Survey Round 7 Data. 2014. Data file edition 2.1. NSD – Norwegian Centre for Research Data, Norway – Data Archive and distributor of ESS data for ESS ERIC.

Gallo L. C., Mattews A. K. Understanding the Association between Socioeconomic Status and Physical Health: Do Negative Emotions Play a Role? Psychological Bulletin, 2003, vol. 129, no 1, pp. 10–51. DOI: 10.1037/0033-2909.129.1.10

Huijts T., Eikemo T. A. Causality, social selectivity or artefacts? Why socioeconomic inequalities in health are not smallest in the Nordic countries. European Journal of Public Health, 2009, vol. 19, no 5, pp. 452–453. DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/ckp103

Huijts T. Social Ties and Health in Europe. Individual Associations, Cross-national Variations, and Contextual Explanations. Nijmegen, Radboud University, 2011. 246 p.

Lachman M. E., Weaver S. L. The sense of control as a moderator of social class differences in health and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1998, vol. 74, no 3, pp. 763–773. DOI: 10.1037/0022-3514.74.3.763

Link B. G., Phelan J. Social conditions as fundamental causes of disease. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 1995, vol. 51 (extra Issue), pp. 80–94. DOI: 10.2307/2626958

Lundberg O., Lahelma E. Nordic health inequalities in the European context. Nordic Welfare States in the European Context. Ed. by M. Kautto, J. Fritzell, B. Hvinden, J. Kvist, H. Uusitalo. London, Routledge, 2001, pp. 42–65.

Mackenbach J. P. The persistence of health inequalities in modern welfare states: the explanation of a paradox. Social Science and Medicine, 2012, vol. 75, no 4, pp. 761–769. DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.02.031

Mackenbach J. P., Stirbu I., Roskam A-J. R., Schaap M. M., Menvielle G., Leinsalu M., Kunst A. E. Socioeconomic inequalities in health in 22 European countries. New England Journal of Medicine, 2008, vol. 358, no 2, pp. 2468–2481. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMsa0707519

Matthews K. A., Gallo L. C. Psychological perspectives on pathways linking socioeconomic status and physical health. Annual Review of Psychology, 2011, vol. 62, pp. 501–530. DOI: 10.1146/annurev.psych.031809.130711

Raudenbush S. W., Bryk A. S. Hierarchical Linear Models: Applications and Data Analysis Methods. Thousand Oaks (CA), Sage, 2002. 512 p.

Rostila M. Social Capital and Health Inequality in European Welfare States. Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 253 p. DOI: 10.1057/9781137305664

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Personal'nye psikhologicheskie resursy i neravenstva v zdorov'e: vyrazhennost' bufernogo effekta v evropeyskikh stranakh [Personal psychological resources and health inequalities: buffering effects in European countries]. Demograficheskoe obozrenie, 2017, vol. 4, no 3, pp. 59–87.

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Sostoyanie zdorov'ya v Evrope i Rossii: obschestvenniy context i sotsial'nye neravenstva [Health in Europe and Russia: social context and social inequalities]. Sotsiologicheskiy zhurnal, 2014, vol. 20, no 4, pp. 19–43.

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Sotsial'noe gosudarstvo i neravenstva v zdorov'e v stranakh Evropy [The welfare state and inequality in health in Europe]. Zhurnal sotsiologii i sotsial'noy antropologii, 2016, vol. 19, no 4, pp. 49–70.

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Sotsial'nye osobennosti zdorov'ia v Evrope i Rossii: vliyanie individual'nykh i contextual'nykh faktorov [Social features of health in Europe and Russia: influence of individual and contextual factors]. Teleskop: zhurnal sotsiologicheskikh i marketingovykh issledovaniy, 2013, no 3, pp. 16–32.

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Sotsial'nye riski depressii v Evrope i Rossii: znachenie demografii, obrazovaniya i sotsial'nogo capitala [Social risks of depression in Europe and Russia: the importance of demography, education and social capital]. Sotsiologicheskiy zhurnal, 2016, vol. 22, no 3, pp. 82–106. DOI: 10.19181/socjour.2016.22.3.4586

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Vliyanie bezrabotitsy na zdorov'e v stranakh Evropy: znachenie sotsial'nogo gosudarstva [The impact of unemployment on health in Europe: the importance of the welfare state]. Sotsiologicheskiy zhurnal, 2017, vol. 23, no 2, pp. 28–50. DOI: 10.19181/socjour.2017.23.2.5158

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Zdorov'e v stranakh Evropy: statusnye neravenstva i vliyanie sotsial'nogo capitala [Health in Europe: status inequalities and the impact of social capital]. Sotsiologicheskiy zhurnal, 2015, vol. 21, no 4, pp. 34–60. DOI: 10.19181/socjour.2015.21.4.3065

Rusinova N. L., Safronov V. V. Znachenie sotsial'nogo capitala dlia zdorov'ya v stranakh Evropy [The importance of social capital for health in Europe]. Zhurnal sotsiologii i sotsial'noy antropologii, 2014, vol. 17, no 3, pp. 112–133.

Ryff C. D., Radler B. T., Friedman E. M. Persistent Psychological Well-being Predicts Improved Self-Rated Health Over 9–10 Years: Longitudinal Evidence from MIDUS. Health Psychology Open, 2015, vol. 2, no 2. DOI: 10.1177/2055102915601582

Schöllgen I., Huxhold O., Schüz B., Tesch-Römer C. Resources for Health: Differential Effects of Optimistic Self-Beliefs and Social Support According to Socioeconomic Status. Health Psychology, 2011, vol. 30, no 3, pp. 326–335. DOI: 10.1037/a0022514

Social Capital and Health. Ed. by I. Kawachi, S. V. Subramanian, D. Kim. New York, Springer, 2008. 292 p.

Social Determinants of Health. Ed. by M. Marmot, R. G. Wilkinson. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2006. 376 p. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198565895.001.0001

Szreter S., Woolcock M. Health by association? Social capital, social theory, and the political economy of public health. International Journal of Epidemiology, 2004, vol. 33, no 4, pp. 650–667. DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyh013

Turiano N., Chapman B. P., Agrigoroaei S., Infurna F. J., Lachman M. Perceived control reduces mortality risk at low, not high, education levels. Health Psychology, 2014, vol. 33, no 8, pp. 883–890. DOI: 10.1037/hea0000022