Centre for Research on Ageing, Health and Wellbeing, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 2012 Apr;46(4):364-73. doi: 10.1177/0004867411433215. Epub 2012 Jan 5.
It is well established that socio-economic position is associated with depression. The experience of financial hardship, having to go without the essentials of daily living due to limited financial resources, may explain the effect. However, there are few studies examining the link between financial hardship and diagnosable depression at a population level. The current paper addresses this gap and also evaluates the moderating effect of age.
Data were from 8841 participants aged 16-85 years in Australia's 2007 National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing. The 12-month prevalence of depressive episode was assessed using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Measures of socio-economic position included: financial hardship, education, labour-force status, occupational skill, household income, main source of income, and area-level disadvantage.
Financial hardship was more strongly associated with depression than other socio-economic variables. Hardship was more strongly associated with current depression than with prior history of depression. The relative effect of hardship was strongest in late adulthood but the absolute effect of hardship was greatest in middle age.
The results demonstrate the critical role of financial hardship in the association between socio-economic disadvantage and 12-month depressive episode, and suggest that social and economic policies that address inequalities in living standards may be an appropriate way to reduce the burden attributable to depression.
社会经济地位与抑郁症之间存在关联，这一点已得到充分证实。由于经济资源有限，人们可能会经历经济困难，无法维持日常生活的基本需求，这种经历可以解释这种关联。然而，很少有研究在人群水平上检验经济困难与可诊断的抑郁症之间的联系。本文填补了这一空白，并评估了年龄的调节作用。
数据来自澳大利亚 2007 年全国心理健康和幸福感调查中的 8841 名 16-85 岁的参与者。使用复合国际诊断访谈评估了 12 个月内抑郁发作的患病率。社会经济地位的衡量指标包括：经济困难、教育、劳动力状况、职业技能、家庭收入、主要收入来源和地区劣势。
经济困难与抑郁的相关性强于其他社会经济变量。困难与当前抑郁的相关性比与先前抑郁史的相关性更强。困难的相对影响在成年后期最强，但困难的绝对影响在中年最大。
研究结果表明，经济困难在社会经济劣势与 12 个月抑郁发作之间的关联中起着关键作用，并表明解决生活水平不平等的社会和经济政策可能是减轻与抑郁相关负担的一种适当方式。
