Overview
Robert F. Schoeni is an economist and demographer at the Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan. His research spans disability trends in older Americans, socioeconomic determinants of health, and the fraction of work-related disability. He is a frequent collaborator of Vicki A. Freedman and Linda G. Martin on the national disability trends evidence base.
Key Contributions / Features
- Early systematic review (Freedman, Martin, and Schoeni 2002): Co-authored first quality-rated synthesis of U.S. old-age disability trend surveys; established framework for evaluating cross-survey inconsistencies.
- Persistent socioeconomic disparities (Schoeni et al. 2005): Showed that elderly disability declined significantly only for the college-educated 1982–2002; gap between education groups widened persistently.
- Why is late-life disability declining? (Schoeni, Freedman, and Martin 2008): Milbank Quarterly analysis of mechanisms behind elderly disability decline.
- Fraction of disability caused at work (Reville and Schoeni 2004): Estimated the share of disability attributable to occupational causes, relevant to workers' compensation and DI policy.
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