[Social capital and mental health in representative sample od chilean workers].
Antecedents. The social capital has been considered an important factor through which the effect of the macro structural social causes for physical and mental health of the people could be partly understood. However, the studies in Latin America are limited.


OBJECTIVE
Determine the possible associations of the dimensions of social capital with the level of psychological distress in the workers.


METHODS
The sample included 1557 workers from all economic areas. 65% were men, with an average age of 37,0 and 14,4 years of schooling. A survey was used and it was adapted and validated for this job. The psychological distress was measured with GHQ-12.


RESULTS
The social capital survey showed good psychometric characteristics and it included three factors (trust, reciprocity, organization and community participation). Significant differences were shown for the level of trust and reciprocity by gender, age and years of schooling. In general, a correlation which was statistically significant was found between the level of psychological distress and the three dimensions of the social capital, especially in the subgroups of women of an intermediate age (41 to 60 years) who have attended primary school (9 to 12 years of schooling).


CONCLUSIONS
The social capital survey showed good psychometric properties which could be useful for other population studies. The association among the three dimensions of social capital with mental health was confirmed, specially in some subgroups. The development of social capital in our countries should be the motive behind public policies and regular evaluations.
Instituto de Salud Poblacional "Escuela de Salud Pública Dr. Salvador Allende", Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile.
Ruben
R
Alvarado
Departamentos de Salud Pública y Medicina Familiar, Escuela de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.|: "Project Scientist, Office of TransformativeGlobal Health, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Ontario, Canada"
Jaime C
JC
Sapag
Instituto de Salud Poblacional "Escuela de Salud Pública Dr. Salvador Allende", Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile.
Juan
J
Arellano
Instituto de Salud Poblacional "Escuela de Salud Pública Dr. Salvador Allende", Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile.
Alex
A
Alarcon
Instituto de Salud Poblacional "Escuela de Salud Pública Dr. Salvador Allende", Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile.
Eric
E
Tapia
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002677:Chile / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000523:psychology; D016272:Occupational Health; D012016:Reference Values; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012737:Sex Factors; D066270:Social Capital; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology*; D035502:Trust / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult