BACKGROUND: This study concerns depression among women living in developing and developed parts of the world. Using a continuum of environments conceptualized as ranging from traditional to modern, the goal is to explore the hypothesis that the prevalence of depression will be higher among those living in modern compared to traditional societies. This issue is examined among samples from West Africa and North America. METHODS: The subjects are 657 women who reside in four locations. An operational definition of modernization is used to place the locales as a continuum in the following order: rural Yorubaland in Nigeria, Yorubas living in urban Nigeria, rural Canada, and urban United States. Variables employed include education, religious orientation, and the role of women as mothers and workers. Depression is assessed using an algorithm based on generally acknowledged criteria. Multivariate logistic regression is used to generate point estimates and confidence intervals for prevalence odds ratios, to adjust for potential confounders, and to assess effect modification. RESULTS: The prevalence of depression was lowest among rural Nigerians and highest among urban residents in the United States. The association of depression with the proposed continuum was strongest among women under the age of 45 who had living children (Odds Ratio: 2.1; 95% Confidence Interval: 1.6-2.9). CONCLUSIONS: In the areas studied, a traditional way of life seems to offer protection against some of the stresses associated with modernization although it does not appear to compensate for the adversity of childlessness. Level of modernization may be a useful concept for understanding differences in rates of depression in different parts of the world.
BACKGROUND: This study concerns depression among women living in developing and developed parts of the world. Using a continuum of environments conceptualized as ranging from traditional to modern, the goal is to explore the hypothesis that the prevalence of depression will be higher among those living in modern compared to traditional societies. This issue is examined among samples from West Africa and North America. METHODS: The subjects are 657 women who reside in four locations. An operational definition of modernization is used to place the locales as a continuum in the following order: rural Yorubaland in Nigeria, Yorubas living in urban Nigeria, rural Canada, and urban United States. Variables employed include education, religious orientation, and the role of women as mothers and workers. Depression is assessed using an algorithm based on generally acknowledged criteria. Multivariate logistic regression is used to generate point estimates and confidence intervals for prevalence odds ratios, to adjust for potential confounders, and to assess effect modification. RESULTS: The prevalence of depression was lowest among rural Nigerians and highest among urban residents in the United States. The association of depression with the proposed continuum was strongest among women under the age of 45 who had living children (Odds Ratio: 2.1; 95% Confidence Interval: 1.6-2.9). CONCLUSIONS: In the areas studied, a traditional way of life seems to offer protection against some of the stresses associated with modernization although it does not appear to compensate for the adversity of childlessness. Level of modernization may be a useful concept for understanding differences in rates of depression in different parts of the world.
Authors: Koen Demyttenaere; Ronny Bruffaerts; Jose Posada-Villa; Isabelle Gasquet; Viviane Kovess; Jean Pierre Lepine; Matthias C Angermeyer; Sebastian Bernert; Giovanni de Girolamo; Pierluigi Morosini; Gabriella Polidori; Takehiko Kikkawa; Norito Kawakami; Yutaka Ono; Tadashi Takeshima; Hidenori Uda; Elie G Karam; John A Fayyad; Aimee N Karam; Zeina N Mneimneh; Maria Elena Medina-Mora; Guilherme Borges; Carmen Lara; Ron de Graaf; Johan Ormel; Oye Gureje; Yucun Shen; Yueqin Huang; Mingyuan Zhang; Jordi Alonso; Josep Maria Haro; Gemma Vilagut; Evelyn J Bromet; Semyon Gluzman; Charles Webb; Ronald C Kessler; Kathleen R Merikangas; James C Anthony; Michael R Von Korff; Philip S Wang; Traolach S Brugha; Sergio Aguilar-Gaxiola; Sing Lee; Steven Heeringa; Beth-Ellen Pennell; Alan M Zaslavsky; T Bedirhan Ustun; Somnath Chatterji Journal: JAMA Date: 2004-06-02 Impact factor: 56.272
Authors: Matty A S de Wit; Wilco C Tuinebreijer; Jack Dekker; Aart-Jan T F Beekman; Wim H M Gorissen; Agnes C Schrier; Brenda W J H Penninx; Ivan H Komproe; Arnoud P Verhoeff Journal: Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol Date: 2008-06-28 Impact factor: 4.328