title: The Family APGAR Index: study on relationship between family function, social support, global stress and mental health perception in women.
abstract: The aim of the study was to evaluate how far women are satisfied with their family function to compare the obtained results with the perception of a global stress (S. Cohen PSS) by the women under study and their mental health (D. Goldberg GHQ-28). The study was aided by the Family APGAR Index (designed by G. Smilkstein) used for the first time in Poland. A group of women (n = 98; mean age = 38) with different levels of education and subdivided into four occupational categories was selected for the study. About 75% of women were married and 80% of them had children. The results obtained differ significantly as far as general assessment and individual indicators are concerned. In 16% of women, the results suggest a serious dysfunction of their families. There are distinct differences between individual occupational groups. The general assessment of family function was significantly correlated with the estimate of the global stress (-31), with the total estimate (-26), as well as with the individual indicators of mental health--especially anxiety and sleeplessness (-33) and depression (-29). Women's satisfaction from the function of their families has, therefore, proved to be a significant factor contributing to lower level of the global stress and constituting a barrier against the occurrence of mental health disturbances.
authors.affiliation: Department of Work Psychology, Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Lodz, Poland.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sprusińska
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D006240:Happiness; D006801:Humans; D008603:Mental Health; D009790:Occupations; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014930:Women / Q000523:psychology*