Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dzt6s Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-25T04:29:43.017Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Gender differences in the relation between depression and social support in later life

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 July 2012

C.M. Sonnenberg ,
D.J.H. Deeg ,
T.G. van Tilburg ,
D. Vink ,
M.L. Stek  and
A.T.F. Beekman
C.M. Sonnenberg*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and EMGO-Institute for Health and Care Research of VU University Medical Centre, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
D.J.H. Deeg
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and EMGO-Institute for Health and Care Research of VU University Medical Centre, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
T.G. van Tilburg
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
D. Vink
Affiliation:
Knowledge Centre of Psychiatry in the Elderly, Zeist, the Netherlands
M.L. Stek
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and EMGO-Institute for Health and Care Research of VU University Medical Centre, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
A.T.F. Beekman
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and EMGO-Institute for Health and Care Research of VU University Medical Centre, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Caroline M. Sonnenberg, Department of Psychiatry of the VU Medical Centre, Valeriusplein 14, 1075 BG Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Phone: 00 31 (0)20 7885565; Fax: 00 31 (0)20 7885577. Email: [email protected].
Get access

Abstract

Background: Prevalence of depression is twice as high in women as in men, also in older adults. Lack of social support is a risk factor for late-life depression. The relation between depression and social support may be different for men and women.

Methods: Data from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam were used to investigate gender differences in the relation between social support and depression in a population-based sample aged 55–85 years, with n = 2,823 at baseline and using the 13-year follow-up data on onset of depression.

Results: Respondents without a partner in the household, with a small network, and with low emotional support were more often depressed, with men showing higher rates of depression than women. A high need for affiliation was associated with depression in women but not in men. Lack of a partner in the household and having a small network predicted onset of depression in men but not in women. In respondents with high affiliation need and low social support, depression rates were higher, with men being more often depressed than women.

Conclusions: Low social support and a high need for affiliation were related to depression in later life, with men being more vulnerable for depression than women. Considering the serious consequences of depression, especially in older people, it is important to identify the persons with low social support and a high need for affiliation, and to help them to increase their social support or to adjust their needs.

Keywords

agingdepressionepidemiologysex differencessocial support
Type
Research Article
Information
International Psychogeriatrics , Volume 25 , Issue 1 , January 2013 , pp. 61 - 70
Copyright
Copyright © International Psychogeriatric Association 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bebbington, P. E.et al. (1998). The influence of age and sex on the prevalence of depressive conditions: report from the National Survey of Psychiatric Morbidity. Psychological Medicine, 28, 9–19.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Beekman, A. T. F., Deeg, D. J. H., Van Tilburg, T. G., Smit, J. H., Hooijer, C. and Van Tilburg, W. (1995). Major and minor depression in later life: a study of prevalence and associated factors. Journal of Affective Disorders, 36, 65–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beekman, A. T. F., Deeg, D. J. H., Van Limbeek, J., Braam, A. W., de Vries, M. Z. and Van Tilburg, W. (1997). Criterion validity of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (CES-D): results from a community-based sample of older subjects in the Netherlands. Psychological Medicine, 27, 231–235.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beekman, A. T., Copeland, J. R. and Prince, M. J. (1999). Review of community prevalence of depression in later life. British Journal of Psychiatry, 174, 307–311.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Beekman, A. T. F.et al. (2002). The natural history of late-life depression: a 6-year prospective study in the community. Archives of General Psychiatry, 59, 605–611.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Berkman, L. F., Berkman, C. S. and Kasl, S. V. (1986). Depressive symptoms in relation to physical health and functioning in the elderly. American Journal of Epidemiology, 124, 372–388.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Blazer, D. G. (1989). Depression in the elderly. New England Journal of Medicine, 32, 164–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blazer, D. G. (1994). Epidemiology of late-life depression. In Schneider, L. J., Reynolds, C. F. III, Lebowitz, B. D. and Friedhoff, A. J. (eds.), Diagnosis and Treatment of Late Life Depression: Results of the NIH Consensus Development Conference (pp. 9–21). Washington DC: Psychiatric Association Press.Google Scholar
Cairney, J. and Wade, T. J. (2002). The influence of age on gender differences in depression: further population-based evidence on the relationship between menopause and the sex difference in depression. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 37, 401–408.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cole, M. G. and Dendukuri, , , N. (2003). Risk factors for depression among elderly community subjects: a systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Psychiatry, 160, 1147–1156.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cole, M. G., Bellavance, F. and Mansour, A. (1999). Prognosis of depression in elderly community and primary care populations: a systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Psychiatry, 156, 1182–1189.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Copeland, J. R. M.et al. (1992). Alzheimer disease, other dementias, depression and pseudodementia: prevalence, incidence and three-year outcome in Liverpool. British Journal of Psychiatry, 161, 230–239.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dalgard, O. S.et al. (2006). Negative life events, social support and gender difference in depression: a multinational community survey with data from the ODIN study. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 41, 444–451.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Deeg, D. J. H. and Westendorp-de Serière, M. (1994). Autonomy and Well-being in the Aging Population I: Report from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam 1992–1993. Amsterdam: VU University Press.Google Scholar
Deeg, D. J. H., Van Tilburg, T. G., Smit, J. H. and De Leeuw, E. D. (2002). Attrition in the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam: the effect of differential inclusion in side studies. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 55, 319–328.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dorn, L. D. and Chrousos, , , G. P. (1997). The neurobiology of stress: understanding regulation of affect during female biological transitions. Seminars in Reproductive Endocrinology, 15, 19–35.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Folstein, M. F., Folstein, S. E. and McHugh, P. R. (1975). “Mini-mental state”: a practical method for grading the cognitive status of patients for the clinician. Journal of Psychiatry Research, 2, 189–198.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harlow, S. D., Goldberg, E. L. and Comstock, G. W. (1991). A longitudinal study of risk factors for depressive symptomatology in elderly widowed and married women. American Journal of Epidemiology, 134, 526–536.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Husaini, B. A.et al. (1991). Social density, stressors, and depression: gender differences among the black elderly. Journal of Gerontology, 46, 236–242.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jorm, A. F. (1987). Sex and age differences in depression: a quantitative synthesis of published research. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 21, 46–53.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kawachi, I. and Berkman, , , L. F. (2001). Social ties and mental health. Journal of Urban Health, 78, 458–467.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kendler, K. S., Thornton, L. M. and Prescott, C. A. (2001). Gender differences in the rates of exposure to stressful life events and sensitivity to their depressogenic effects. American Journal of Psychiatry, 158, 587–593.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kessler, R. C. (2006). The epidemiology of depression among women. InKeyers, C. L. M and Goodman, S. H. (eds.), Women and Depression (pp. 22–37). New York: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kessler, R. C. and McLeod, , , J. D. (1984). Sex differences in vulnerability to undesirable life events. American Social Review, 49, 620–631.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kessler, R. C., McGonagle, K. A., Swartz, M., Blazer, D. G. and Nelson, C. B. (1993). Sex and depression in the National Co-morbidity Survey 1: lifetime prevalence, chronicity and recurrence. Journal of Affective Disorders, 29, 85–96.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kooiman, L. A., Jansen, B. J. and Peeters, F. P. (2007). Sensitive to change: neuroendocrinologic aspects of depression in women [English translation]. Tijdschrift voor Psychiatrie, 49, 241–250.Google ScholarPubMed
Krause, N. (1986). Stress and sex differences in depressive symptoms among older adults. Journal of Gerontology, 41, 727–731.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kriegsman, D. M. W., Deeg, D. J. H., Van Eijk, J. T. M., Penninx, B. W. J. H. and Boeke, A. J. (1997). Do disease specific characteristics add to the explanation of mobility limitations in patients with different chronic diseases? A study in the Netherlands. Journal of Epidemiological Community Health, 51, 676–685.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kuehner, C. (2003). Gender differences in unipolar depression: an update of epidemiological findings and possible explanations. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 108, 163–174.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leach, L. S., Christensen, H., Mackinnon, A. J., Windsor, T. D. and Butterworth, P. (2008). Gender differences in depression and anxiety across the adult lifespan: the role of psychosocial mediators. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 43, 983–998.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maciejewski, P. K., Prigerson, H. G. and Mazure, C. M. (2001). Sex differences in event-related risk for major depression. Psychological Medicine, 31, 593–604.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mendes de Leon, C. F., Kasl, S. V. and Jacobs, S. (1994). A prospective study of widowhood and the changes in symptoms of depression in a community sample of the elderly. Psychological Medicine, 24, 613–624.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Neff, L. A. and Karney, B. R. (2005). To know you is to love you: the implications of global adoration and specific accuracy for marital relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 480–497.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
NIH Consensus Development Conference (1992). Diagnosis and treatment of depression of late life. JAMA, 268, 1018–1029.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Noble, R. E. (2005) Depression in women. Metabolism, 54, 49–52.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2000). The role of rumination in depressive disorders and mixed anxiety/depressive symptoms. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 109, 504–511.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Paykel, E. S. (1994). Life events, social support and depression. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 89, 50–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Penninx, B. W., Van Tilburg, T. G., Kriegsman, D. M., Boeke, A. J., Deeg, D. J. and Van Eijk, J. T. (1999). Social network, social support, and loneliness in older persons with different chronic diseases. Journal of Aging and Health, 11, 51–68.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Prince, M. J.et al. (1999). Depression symptoms in late life assessed using the EURO-D scale. Effect of age, gender and marital status in 14 European centres. British Journal of Psychiatry, 174, 339–345.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D scale: a self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measures, 1, 385–401.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Radloff, L. S. and Teri, L. (1986). Use of the CES-D with older adults. Clinical Gerontology, 5, 119–136.Google Scholar
Robb, C., Small, B. and Haley, W. E. (2008). Gender differences in coping with functional disability in older married couples: the role of personality and social resources. Aging and Mental Health, 12, 423–433.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ross, C. E., Mirowsky, J. and Cockerham, W. C. (1983). Social class, Mexican culture, and fatalism: their effects on psychological distress. American Journal of Community Psychology, 11, 383–399.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sonnenberg, C. M., Beekman, A. T. F., Deeg, D. J. H. and Van Tilburg, W. (2000). Sex differences in late-life depression. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 101, 286–292.Google ScholarPubMed
Takizawa, T., Kondo, T., Sakihara, S., Ariizumi, M., Watanabe, N. and Oyama, H. (2006). Stress buffering effects of social support on depressive symptoms in middle age: reciprocity and community mental health. Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 60, 652–661. (Erratum: (2007), 61, 336–337.)CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Turner, R. J. and Marino, , , F. (1994). Social support and social structure: a descriptive epidemiology. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 35, 193–212.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Umberson, D., Wortman, , Kessler, C. B. and , R. C. (1992). Widowhood and depression: explaining long-term gender differences in vulnerability. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 33, 10–24.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Grootheest, D. S., Beekman, A. T. F., Broese van Groenou, M. I. and Deeg, D. J. H. (1999). Sex differences in depression after widowhood. Do men suffer more? Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 34, 391–398.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Van Sonsbeek, J. L. A. (1988). Methodological and substantial aspects of the OECD indicator of chronic functional limitations. Maandbericht Gezondheidszorg Statistieken (CBS), 88, 4–17.Google Scholar
Van Tilburg, T. G. (1988). Verkregen en gewenste ondersteuning in het licht van eenzaamheidservaringen [Obtained and desired social support in association with loneliness], pp. 58–60 and pp. 119–121. PhD Dissertation, VU University Amsterdam.Google Scholar
Van Tilburg, T. G. (1995). Delineation of the social network and differences in network size. InKnipscheer, C. P. M., de Jong-Gierveld, J., van Tilburg, T. G. and Dykstra, P. A. (eds.), Living Arrangements and Social Networks of Older Adults (pp. 83–96). Amsterdam: VU University Press.Google Scholar
Van Tilburg, T. G. (1998). Losing and gaining in old age: changes in personal network size and social support in a four-year longitudinal study. Journal of Gerontology, 53B, S313–S323.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vink, D.et al. (2009). Onset of anxiety and depression in the aging population: comparison of risk factors in a 9-year prospective study. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 17, 642–652.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weismann, M. M. and Klerman, G. L. (1977). Sex differences and the epidemiology of depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 34, 98–111.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wolk, S. and Weissman, M. M. (1995). Women and depression: an update. Review of Psychiatry, 14, 227–259.Google Scholar