Entrepreneurship Predicts Lower Mortality

Analysis of the Health and Retirement Study (27,000+ adults, 1998–2020) finds that people who report being self‑employed have about a 10% lower mortality risk versus wage workers, and that longer spells of self‑employment are associated with larger benefits. The effect is concentrated among opportunity‑driven entrepreneurs and is partly — but only minimally (≈3.7%) — mediated by better mental‑health scores (less loneliness/depression); causality remains uncertain. — If robust, the link implies that labor‑market policy, entrepreneurship support and public‑health strategies that preserve autonomy and purpose could affect population mortality and inequalities.