Risk and Protective Factors of Mental Health Conditions: Impact of Employment, Deprivation and Social Relationships (original) (raw)

Mental health, family roles and employment status inside and outside the household in Spain

Gaceta sanitaria, 2018

To document the prevalence of poor mental health by gender and social class, and to analyze if poor mental health is associated with the family roles or the employment status inside and outside the household. A cross-sectional study based on a representative sample of the Spanish population was carried out (n = 14,247). Mental health was evaluated using GHQ-12. Employment status, marital status, family roles (main breadwinner and the person who mainly carries out the household work) and educational level were considered as explanatory variables. Multiple logistic regression models stratified by gender and social class were fitted and adjusted odds ratios (aOR) were obtained. Gender and social class differences in the prevalence of poor mental health were observed. Unemployment was associated with higher prevalence. Among men the main breadwinner role was related to poor mental health mainly in those that belong to manual classes (aOR = 1.2). Among women, mainly among nonmanual class...

Desigualdades socioeconómicas en la salud mental: un análisis empírico para 30 países europeos

2020

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Mental health is one of the most demanding public health challenges in the European Region, as it is the leading cause of disability and the third leading cause of overall disease burden. Since it is considered a multidimensional concept, a connection can be established between these disorders and diverse socioeconomic aspects, such as financial hardships or social exclusion. These relationships have also led to disparities among individuals, shaping the socioeconomic inequality regarding mental health over the years. The urge to broaden our knowledge on these concerns and the lack of empirical studies for Europe on this subject have drawn our attention. OBJECTIVE: To examine the link between mental health status and negative life impacts on individuals, across different socioeconomic groups in an empirical analysis for 30 European countries throughout 3 different waves. METHODS: This study analyses data for 30 European countries from the European Quality of Li...

Contribution of the Economic Crisis to the Risk Increase of Poor Mental Health in a Region of Spain

Previous research suggests that the economic crisis can affect mental health. The purpose of this study was to analyse the association of risk of poor mental health with various socioeconomic, demographic, health, quality of life and social support variables; and to evaluate the contribution of socioeconomic variables most affected by the beginning of the economic crisis (employment situation and income) on the changes in the prevalence of the risk of poor mental health between 2005 and 2010. A study of prevalence evolution in adult population residents of the Valencian Community in the Spanish Mediterranean was conducted. We studied 5781 subjects in 2005 and 3479 in 2010. Logistic regression models have been adjusted to analyse the association between variables. A standardization procedure was carried out to evaluate which part of the changes in overall prevalence could be attributed to variations in the population structure by age, sex, employment status and income between the yea...

Inequalities in mental health in the working population of Spain: a National Health Survey-based study

Gaceta Sanitaria, 2016

Objective: In the working population, poor mental health is a significant problem whose prevalence rates and associated factors could differ by gender, especially in a period of socioeconomic changes. The aims of this study were: a) to determine the prevalence of poor mental health in the working population of Spain in 2011; b) to identify the association of this prevalence with socioeconomic and work-related variables for men and women separately; c) to determine if the patterns differ by gender. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with data from the National Health Survey of Spain (2011). Of the 21,007 participants in the survey, we selected 7396 whose employment status was described as "working" The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) was used as a screening tool to detect poor mental health. Prevalences were calculated and bivariate and multivariate logistic regression models were fitted to verify the association between variables. Results: The prevalence of poor mental health was higher among women (19.9%) than men (13.9%), the overall prevalence being 16.8%. The variables associated with a higher prevalence were type of contract and work-related variables in men, and age and socioeconomic variables in women. Conclusions: This study shows that, in the working population of Spain, the prevalence of poor mental health and its related factors differ by gender. Poor mental health is mainly related to socioeconomic variables in women but is mostly associated with work-related variables in men.

Inequalities in mental health in the Autonomous Communities in Spain: A multilevel study

The aim of this study was to analyze inequalities in the prevalence of poor mental health and their association with socioeconomic variables and with the care network in the Autonomous Communities in Spain. A cross-sectional multilevel study was performed, which analyzed individual data from the National Health Survey in Spain (ENS), in 2006 (n = 29,476 people over the age of 16). The prevalence of poor mental health was the dependent variable, measured by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12 > = 3). Individual and contextual socioeconomic variables, along with mental health services in the Autonomous Communities, were included as independent variables. Models of multilevel logistic regression were used, and odds ratios (OR) were obtained, with confidence intervals (CI) of 95%. The results showed that there are inequalities in the prevalence of poor mental health in Spain, associated to contextual variables, such as unemployment rate (men OR 1.04 CI 1.01-1.07; women OR 1.02 CI 1.00-1.05). On the other hand, it was observed that inequalities in the mental health care resources in the Autonomous Communities also have an impact on poor mental health.

Employment Precariousness and Poor Mental Health: Evidence from Spain on a New Social Determinant of Health

Journal of Environmental and Public Health, 2013

Background.Evidence on the health-damaging effects of precarious employment is limited by the use of one-dimensional approaches focused on employment instability. This study assesses the association between precarious employment and poor mental health using the multidimensional Employment Precariousness Scale.Methods.Cross-sectional study of 5679 temporary and permanent workers from the population-based Psychosocial Factors Survey was carried out in 2004-2005 in Spain. Poor mental health was defined as SF-36 mental health scores below the 25th percentile of the Spanish reference for each respondent’s sex and age. Prevalence proportion ratios (PPRs) of poor mental health across quintiles of employment precariousness (reference: 1st quintile) were calculated with log-binomial regressions, separately for women and men.Results.Crude PPRs showed a gradient association with poor mental health and remained generally unchanged after adjustments for age, immigrant status, socioeconomic posit...

Editors’ Comments on the Special Issue “Social Determinants of Mental Health”

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Mental disorders are one of the greatest public health concerns of our time, and they are affected by social factors. To reduce the considerable burden of mental disorders, more global and systematic knowledge of the social determinants of mental health is necessary. This paper presents the results of the 27 studies included in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Special Issue, “Social Determinants of Mental Health”. The studies are grouped into four broad categories: social inclusion and mental health, young people’s mental health, mental health at work, and mental health service users. The results cover different countries, age populations, settings, and methodologies. Finally, the main findings on the relationship between social determinants and mental health are presented and summarized.

The effect of socioeconomic position in the experience of disability among people with mental disorders: findings from the World Mental Health Survey Initiative Portugal

International Journal for Equity in Health, 2018

Background: Mental disorders are a major cause of disability with impacts on daily functioning and quality of life, which has been associated with socioeconomic disadvantage. The present study aims to assess how socioeconomic position is related to the disability reported by people with mental disorders, using data from the World Mental Health Survey (WMHS) Initiative Portugal. Methods: Using data from the Portuguese Mental Health Survey, a nationally representative cross-sectional study (n = 3849), several logistic regression models with interaction terms were performed to evaluate the effect of different indicators of socioeconomic position on the disability reported by people with any mental disorder (any 12-month mood or anxiety disorder). Odds ratios were estimated at the specific values of the main effects and interaction terms between the presence of any mental disorder and education, employment status, self-perceived financial deprivation and subjective social status. Results: The prevalence rate of any mood or anxiety disorder was 21.0% (n = 788), among which 14.7% (n = 115) reported disability. The results show that among people with any 12-month mental disorder, those in the employment category of "retired or others" had two times higher odds of reporting disability (OR = 2.19; 95%CI: 1. 06-4.48) when compared to participants categorized as "working". Likewise, individuals with financial deprivation had two times higher odds of reporting disability when compared to those non-financially deprived (OR = 2.36; 95%CI: 1.31-4.24). The odds ratios obtained for the specific years of education evaluated were not statistically significant but seem to suggest an educational gradient. Conclusions: The findings of this study indicate that the disability reported by people with mental disorders varies according to socioeconomic position and draw attention to the need to develop policies to address these inequalities.