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The three-year persistence of depressive symptoms in men and women

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  • Bracke, Piet

Abstract

Little is known about sex differences in the course of depression. The results of the few surveys of the general population are inconsistent. Furthermore, the generalizability of most of these findings is limited. First, only a handful of studies of the general population use a prospective design to estimate the persistence of depression in women and men. Second, in some studies only particular subgroups of the general population are sampled, and finally, depression persistence is often measured using unconventional short time-intervals. Using data from five waves of the Flemish subsample of the Panel Study of Belgian Households (PSBH) -- a probability sample of 1168 (52.5%) women and 1055 (47.5%) men -- we tried to go beyond these shortcomings. Depression persistence is estimated using a self-report inventory on four occasions separated by intervals of one year (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996). Results show a significant influence of sex, other sociodemographic characteristics, and depression severity at baseline on three-year depression persistence. Women experience more chronicity, a difference that can be partially ascribed to sex differences in employment status, education and marital status. Persistence in linked to marital status in women. In men persistence is associated with level of education and with employment status. Depression severity at baseline, however, largely explains the influence of these social conditions on depression persistence.

Suggested Citation

  • Bracke, Piet, 2000. "The three-year persistence of depressive symptoms in men and women," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 51(1), pages 51-64, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:51:y:2000:i:1:p:51-64
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    Cited by:

    1. Michael Kraus & Taha Karaman, 2013. "Parameters of education and the course of depression: An analysis in the Turkish sociocultural context," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 59(4), pages 318-331, June.
    2. Bjelland, Ingvar & Krokstad, Steinar & Mykletun, Arnstein & Dahl, Alv A. & Tell, Grethe S. & Tambs, K., 2008. "Does a higher educational level protect against anxiety and depression? The HUNT study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 66(6), pages 1334-1345, March.
    3. Carmen K M Wong & Jun Liang & Man L Chan & Yin H Chan & Laam Chan & Kwong Y Wan & Ming S Ng & Dicken C C Chan & Samuel Y S Wong & Martin C S Wong, 2014. "Prevalence and Psychosocial Correlates of Depressive Symptoms in Urban Chinese Women during Midlife," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(11), pages 1-7, November.

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