title: The effect of urban-area unemployment on the mental health of citizens differs between Slovak and Dutch cities.
abstract: Conclusive evidence on the association of mental health problems (MHP) with area unemployment is lacking in regard to Central European cities. We obtained data on residents aged 19-64 from Slovak and Dutch cities from the FP7 EURO-URHIS 2 project. Multilevel logistic regression showed that the association between MHP (GHQ-12-total score ≥2) and area unemployment was strong in the Netherlands, but absent in Slovakia. Slovak citizens from the most favourable neighbourhoods had nearly double the risk of MHP than their Dutch counterparts. Individual-level socioeconomic characteristics did not explain area differences. The effect of urban-area unemployment seems to differ between Central European and Western European countries.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School Kosice Institute for Society and Health, Safarik University, Trieda SNP 1, 040 11 Kosice, Slovak Republic; Department of Social Medicine, Medical Faculty, PJ Safarik University Kosice, Trieda SNP 1, 040 11 Kosice, Slovak Republic; Slovak Public Health Association - SAVEZ, Trieda SNP 1, 040 11 Kosice, Slovak Republic. Electronic address: martina.behanova@upjs.sk.
authors.forename: Martina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Behanova
authors.forename: Iveta
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Nagyova
authors.forename: Zuzana
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Katreniakova
authors.forename: Erik J C
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: van Ameijden
authors.forename: Jitse P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: van Dijk
authors.forename: Sijmen A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Reijneveld
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011204:Poverty Areas; D015995:Prevalence; D018154:Slovakia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012923:Social Class; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014478:Unemployment / Q000523:psychology*; D014505:Urban Population; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Area deprivation; Mental health; Socioeconomic inequalities; Urban health