The Great Recession and Mental Health in the United States

Miriam K. Forbes; Robert F. Krueger

doi:10.1177/2167702619859337

The Great Recession and Mental Health in the United States

Miriam K. Forbes, Robert F. Krueger

Psychology (Twin Cities)

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

75 Scopus citations

Abstract

The full scope of the impact of the Great Recession on individuals’ mental health has not been quantified to date. In this study we aimed to determine whether financial, job-related, and housing impacts experienced by individuals during the recession predicted changes in the occurrence of symptoms of depression, generalized anxiety, panic attacks, and problematic alcohol use or other substance use. Longitudinal survey data (n = 2,530 to n = 3,293) from the national Midlife in the United States study that were collected before (2003–2004) and after (2012–2013) the Great Recession were analyzed. The population-level trend was toward improvements in mental health over time. However, for individuals, each recession impact experienced was associated with long-lasting and transdiagnostic declines in mental health. These relationships were stronger for some sociodemographic groups, which suggests the need for additional support for people who suffer marked losses during recessions and for those without a strong safety net.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	900-913
Number of pages	14
Journal	Clinical Psychological Science
Volume	7
Issue number	5
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702619859337
State	Published - Sep 1 2019

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by National Institute on Drug Abuse Grant T32-DA037183 (to M. K. Forbes), Australian Research Council Grant FL150100096, and a Macquarie University Research Fellowship. The Midlife in the United States study was supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Successful Midlife Development and by National Institute on Aging Grants AG020166 and AG051426, including support for the work of R. F. Krueger on this project. The funding bodies that supported this research had no role in the study design; collection, analysis, or interpretation of data; the writing of the report; or the decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2019.

Keywords

Great Recession
global financial crisis
longitudinal research
mental health
open data

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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The Great Recession and Mental Health in the United States

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

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