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Psychiatric disorder in a rural and an urban population: 1. Aetiology of depression

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

George W. Brown  and
Ray Prudo
George W. Brown*
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, Bedford College, University of London
Ray Prudo
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, Bedford College, University of London
*
1 Address for correspondence: Prefessor G. W. Brown, Department of Sociology, Fraser's Lodge, Bedford College, London NWI 4NS.
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Synopsis

An earlier survey of a random sample of women in Camberwell in South London has shown that the majority of new occurrences of depressive disorders were brought about by certain kinds of life event and ongoing difficulty (provoking agent) and that the risk was increased under these circumstances by the presence of certain other social factors (vulnerability factors). Working-class women were much more likely to develop depression because they experienced more of these factors. A new survey in a rural population in the Outer Hebrides has confirmed the importance of these factors in the genesis of depression, although provoking agents occurred much less frequently in this rural setting. However, integration into the traditional way of life, rather than a middle-class status, was related to a lower chance of developing depression, and this appears to be explained by the relationship of provoking agents and vulnerability factors to such integration in the Outer Hebrides, and to social class status in Camberwell.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 11 , Issue 3 , August 1981 , pp. 581 - 599
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1981

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