Social Factors of Depression

The prevailing research states that depression is caused by a combination of factors, physical, psychological and social. The social factors which impact depression are often beyond the control of the person who is suffering. However, awareness of the impact of these social factors can help mental health professionals in treating depression effectively.

Gender and Depression

• According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about 6 million men report symptoms relating to depression each year, compared with 12 million women. The large gap may be less related to actual differences in male depression and female depression than with social factors which make it more acceptable for women to admit to depression. Men are more likely to adopt unhealthy coping strategies, such as overwork, substance abuse, especially alcohol abuse, risky sex and other self-destructive behaviors.

Black Women and Depression

• Black women face unique social pressures due to their gender and their race. Many black women also deal with financial deprivation and raising children alone. This combination of social factors makes black women especially prone to depression. Black women also face high rates of health problems such as hypertension and cardiovascular disease, along with obesity rates higher than those for white women, according to Annelle Primm, M.D., M.P.H., and an authority on the subject. However, there is also a strong cultural bias in the black community against mental health treatment which causes many black women to hesitate to seek help with mental health issues.

Age and Depression

• An article published in the American Medical News in 2009 noted that National Institutes of Health statistics reported that about 2 million of the 35 million Americans 65 and older experience full-blown depression. Another 5 million seniors confront less severe forms. However, age alone is not the culprit. Rather, increased isolation and health problems, along with a loss of mobility of independence, are the true reasons many older people become depressed. However, vascular depression is a recently recognized form of depression which often reflects silent cardiovascular disease and is most common among persons over the age of 60.

Stress and Coping Skills

• Depression can have an adverse affect on the coping skills of the sufferer, leading to a deterioration of interpersonal relationships. This, in turn, can reinforce the depression and make it worse. Increased stress can also have a negative effect on an individual's coping skills. The result can be that the depressed person withdraws from others and becomes physically lethargic. Another social factor relating to stress and depression is the pressure felt by lower class women or racial minorities. Individuals in these groups may compare their situations unfavorably to those of middle class women which results in depression.

Seasonal Affective Disorder

• Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a unique form of depression which is the reaction of the sufferer to changing of the seasons. Its most common form is found in people who suffer during the winter, but less common forms of the disorder occur in people who become depressed during the summer. A related condition affects individuals whose work prevents them from being exposed to natural sunlight or who are forced to spend daytime hours indoors. This includes shift workers, people who travel extensively or people who work long hours indoors with little exposure to natural light. In these cases, the individual does not have SAD, but is reacting to externally induced changes in the sleep-wake cycle.