Friends or foes? Understanding the Role of Firms and Workplaces for worker Health - Gender and sickness absence

In my doctoral project I intend to shed light on the relation between gender and sickness absence and will try to identify work-related causes to gender differences in sickness absence. One of the most stable and prominent finding in research on sickness absence is that women have higher absence rates than men. This pattern is especially strong in Norway compared to other European countries. However, the association between gender and sickness absence has received little attention in research on work and employment, and we have limited knowledge of the mechanisms causing this pattern. They may be related to various factors tied to health and abilities, employee attendance motivation and absence culture. More research is needed to better understand these c omplex issues. The research questions in my project will be addressed using quantitative data from Norwegian administrative register and the Level of Living Survey as well as the European Labour Force Survey. My dissertation is undertaken as a part of a larger research project called 'Friends or Foes? Understanding the role of firms and workplaces for worker health' fully funded by the Norwegian Research Council (NFR). I apply for a grant from the Leiv Eriksson mobility programme to enable a stay as a visiting scholar at the Department of Sociology, UC Berkeley. This department is is the world's top-ranked center for sociological research, training, and teaching. My plan is to also affiliate with the Instiute for Research on Labour and Employment (IRL E) which provide programs and colloquias highly relevant for my project. At UC Berkeley I will familiarize myself with American research on absenteeism and try to get access to American absence data. This would allow a comparative study between Norway and the US or Europe and the US. I wish to stay at Berkeley from august to December 2011 together with my husband. My direct association at Berkeley will be Professor Trond Petersen.