Motherhood, employment and the development of depression. A replication of a finding?
A prospective inquiry of a largely working-class sample of women with children considers the effect of employment on risk of developing clinical depression. The hypothesis was that there would be a direct protective effect arising from employment once quality of other support was taken into account. In fact full-time working mothers were at high risk. This appeared to be explained by either prior work strain or a severe event involving 'deviant' behaviour on the part of husband/boyfriend or child. Neither factor was relevant for part-time workers. The severe events appeared to be particularly depressogenic for full-time workers because they represented either failure in the motherhood role or a sense of entrapment in an unrewarding work/domestic situation. However, those in part-time work had a low rate of onset compared with non-workers, and the difference appears to be related to non-working women feeling less secure about their marriages.
Brown
G W
GW
Department of Social Policy and Social Science, Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, University of London.
Bifulco
A
A
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000209:etiology*; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008393:Marriage / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D012306:Risk; D012649:Self Concept; D015406:Single Parent / Q000523:psychology