title: Disparities in psychological distress across education and sex: a longitudinal analysis of their persistence within a cohort over 19 years.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Disparities in psychological distress across socioeconomic status and sex persist throughout adulthood as cohorts age. In this study, we investigate the extent to which this persistence represents either (i) a single set of individuals who at the start of adulthood show distress that is chronic and long lasting or (ii) different sets of individuals that have a staggered onset of short-term distress throughout adulthood.
  
  
  METHODS
  We use path analysis on data from the National Child Development Study, a longitudinal cohort study that assessed psychological distress at ages 23, 33, and 42 years.
  
  
  RESULTS
  About 80% of distress disparities at age 42 result from chronic distress that was present in a single set of individuals at least 19 years earlier at the beginning of adulthood.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results support a targeted approach to the reduction of distress disparities that focuses on young adults with high levels of distress and seeks to improve their long-term mental health.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health and Behavioral Sciences, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, CO 80217, USA. miech@gmail.com
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Miech
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Power
authors.forename: William W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Eaton
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012923:Social Class; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology