Demoralization and gender differences in a kibbutz.
Gender differences in demoralization (depressive symptoms) were examined in a first-ever true prevalence study conducted in a kibbutz. The unusual organizational arrangements of this commune, where women have achieved higher levels of equality than in most other societies, offered a laboratory-like opportunity to test the psychosocial factors imputed as a partial explanation for the higher rates of demoralization in women. Demoralization was studied using the 27-item scale of the Psychiatric Epidemiology Research Interview (PERI) in all of the adult population of a single kibbutz. The response rate was close to 95%. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to assess the effects of key sociodemographic and kibbutz-related variables on gender differences. The results showed that women had higher mean scores and rates even after these variables were controlled. The female:male demoralization ratio was well within the range of results obtained in non-socialist Israeli urban settings. The paper concludes with a discussion on the tentative relevance of the study results for the interpretation of the 2:1 female-male ratio of depression found in the epidemiological literature.
Levav
I
I
Department of Social Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Jerusalem.
Gilboa
S
S
Ruiz
F
F
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006380:Helplessness, Learned; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007557:Israel / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012931:Social Environment; D012934:Social Isolation; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D016526:Workload / Q000523:psychology