Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-sxzjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-23T13:24:46.582Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Impact of economic crisis on mental health: a 10-year challenge

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 April 2020

Donatella Marazziti Open the ORCID record for Donatella Marazziti [Opens in a new window] ,
Maria T. Avella ,
Nicola Mucci ,
Alessandra Della Vecchia ,
Tea Ivaldi ,
Stefania Palermo  and
Federico Mucci Open the ORCID record for Federico Mucci [Opens in a new window]
Donatella Marazziti
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy Saint Camillus International University of Health and Medical Sciences, Rome, Italy BRF Foundation Lucca, Lucca, Italy
Maria T. Avella
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Nicola Mucci
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina Sperimentale e Clinica, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
Alessandra Della Vecchia
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Tea Ivaldi
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Stefania Palermo
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Federico Mucci*
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy Dipartimento di Biochimica e Biologia Molecolare, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
*
Federico Mucci, MD Email: federico.mucci@med.unipi.it
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The worldwide economic crisis of the last decade, and still unresolved, led to a great recession involving all major economies. Since economic factors may influence mental wellbeing, not surprisingly a rise in poor mental health was observed in different countries, while representing a great challenge to psychiatric interventions. This paper aims at reviewing the available English literature focusing on the impact of the current economic crisis on mental health, with a special focus on depression and suicide. Available studies indicate that consequences of economic crisis, such as unemployment, increased workload or work reorganization, and reduced staff and wages, may constitute important stressing factors with a negative impact on mental health. Although data are not easily comparable in different countries, depression seems to be the most common psychiatric disorders especially in middle-aged men. Even suicide rates seem to be increased in men, mainly in countries with no public welfare or poor family relationships. All these findings require a careful attention from both governments that cut resources on public health instead of investing in it, and psychiatric associations that should implement appropriate strategies to face and to manage this sort of depression epidemic driven by economic crisis. Again, as available data suggest that the impact of the crisis might have been attenuated in countries with higher spending in social protection, they clearly urge policy makers to take into account possible health externalities associated to inadequate social protection systems.

Keywords

Economic crisisrecessionunemploymentmental healthdepressionsuicide
Type
Review
Information
CNS Spectrums , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , February 2021 , pp. 7 - 13
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press 2020

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

1.European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions. Impact of the Crisis on Working Conditions in Europe. Dublin, Ireland: Eurofound; 2014.Google Scholar
2.Benach, J, Vives, A, Amable, M, et al. Precarious employment: understanding an emerging social determinant of health. Annu Rev Public Health. 2014;35:229–253. doi: 10.1146/annurev-publhealth-032013-182500.3.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
3.Giorgi, G, Arcangeli, G, Mucci, N, et al. Economic stress in work place: the impact of fear the crisis on mental health. Work. 2015;51(1):135–142. doi: 10.3233/WOR-141844.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
4.Giorgi, G, Leon-Perez, JM, Cupelli, V, et al. Do I just look stressed or am I stressed? Work-related stress in a sample of Italian employees. Ind Health. 2014;52(1):43–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
5.Houdmont, J, Kerr, R, Addley, K. Psychosocial factors and economic recession: the Stormont study. Occup Med (Lond). 2012;62(2):98–104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6.Economou, M, Madianos, M, Peppou, LE, et al. Suicidal ideation and reported suicide attempts in Greece during the economic crisis. World Psychiatry. 2013;12(1):53–59.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
7.Cordoba-Dona, JA, San Sebastian, M, Escolar-Pujolar, A, et al. Economic crisis and suicidal behaviour: the role of unemployment, sex and age in Andalusia, southern Spain. Int J Equity Health. 2014;13:55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8.Forbes, MK, Krueger, RF. The great recession and mental health in the United States. Clin Psychol Sci. 2019;7(5):900–913. doi: 10.1177/2167702619859337.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
9.Ayers, JW, Althouse, BM, Allem, JP, et al. A novel surveillance of psychological distress during the great recession. J Affect Disord. 2012;142(1–3):323–330. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2012.05.005.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
10.Buffel, V, Dereuddre, R, Bracke, P. Medicalization of the uncertainty? An empirical study of the relationships between unemployment or job insecurity, professional care seeking, and the consumption of antidepressants. Eur Sociol Rev. 2015;31(4):446–459.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
11.Janlert, U, Hammarström, A. Which theory is best? Explanatory models of the relationship between unemployment and health. BMC Public Health. 2009;9:235.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
12.Blomqvist, S, Burström, B, Backhans, MC. Increasing health inequalities between women in and out of work–the impact of recession or policy change? A repeated cross-sectional study in Stockholm county, 2006 and 2010. Int J Equity Health. 2014;13:51. doi: 10.1186/1475-9276-13-51.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
13.Cooper, M. Complexity theory after the financial crisis. J Cult Econ. 2011;4(4):371–385.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
14.Chang, SS, Stuckler, D, Yip, P, et al. Impact of 2008 global economic crisis on suicide: time trend study in 54 countries. BMJ. 2013;347:f5239. doi: 10.1136/bmj.f5239.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
15.de Belvis AG, , Ferre, F, Specchia, ML, et al. The financial crisis in Italy: implications for the healthcare sector. Health Policy. 2012;106(1):10–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16.Calear, AL, Batterham, PJ, Christensen, H. Predictors of help-seeking for suicidal ideation in the community: Risks and opportunities for public suicide prevention campaigns. Psychiatry Res. 2014;219(3):525–530.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
17.Reynders, A, Kerkhof, AJ, Molenberghs, G, et al. Attitudes and stigma in relation to help-seeking intentions for psychological problems in low and high suicide rate regions. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2014;49(2):231–239.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
18.Wahlbeck, K, McDaid, D. Actions to alleviate the mental health impact of the economic crisis. World Psychiatry. 2012;11:139–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
19.Cagney, H Depression: an economic and moral case to tackle the crisis. Lancet Psychiatry. 2015;2(1):20. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(14)00136-9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
20.Consiglio del’Unione Europea. Raccomandazione del consiglio sul programma nazionale di riforma 2019 dell’Italia e che formula un parere del Consiglio sul programma di stabilità; 2019. http://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-10165-2019-INIT/it/pdf.Google Scholar
21.EUROSTAT. Smarter, greener, more inclusive? Indicators to support the Europe 2020 strategy; 2019. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/3217494/10155585/KS-04-19-559-EN-N.pdf/b8528d01-4f4f-9c1e-4cd4-86c2328559de. accessed on: Sept. 7th 2019.Google Scholar
22.Moher, D, Liberati, A, Tetzlaff, J, et al. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta analyses: the PRISMA statement. PLoS Med. 2009;6(7):e1000097. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1000097. accessed on: Sept. 7th 2019.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
23.Evans-Lacko, S, Knapp, M, McCrone, P, et al. The mental health consequences of the recession: economic hardship and employment of people with mental health problems in 27 European countries. PLoS One. 2013;8(7):e69792. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0069792.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
24.Katikireddi, SV, Niedzwiedz, CL, Popham, F. Trends in population mental health before and after the 2008 recession: a repeat cross-sectional analysis of the 1991–2010 Health Surveys of England. BMJ Open. 2012;2:e001790. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2012-001790.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
25.Lasalvia, A, Zoppei, S, Van Bortel, T, et al. Global pattern of experienced and anticipated discrimination reported by people with major depressive disorder: a cross-sectional survey. Lancet. 2013;381(9860):55–62. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)61379-8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
26.Miret, M, Caballero, FF, Huerta-Ramirez, R, et al. Factors associated with suicidal ideation and attempts in Spain for different age groups. Prevalence before and after the onset of the economic crisis. J Affect Disord. 2014;163:1–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
27.Modrek, S, Cullen, MR. Health consequences of the ‘great recession’ on the employed: evidence from an industrial cohort in aluminum manufacturing. Soc Sci Med. 2013;92:105–113.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
28.Odone, A, Landriscina, T, Amerio, A, et al. The impact of the current economic crisis on mental health in Italy: evidence from two representative national surveys. Eur J Public Health. 2018;28(3):490–495.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
29.Tamayo-Fonseca, N, Nolasco, A, Moncho, J, et al. Contribution of the economic crisis to the risk increase of poor mental health in a region of Spain. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018;15(11):2517. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15112517.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
30.Sargent-Cox, K, Butterworth, P, Anstey, KJ. The global financial crisis and psychological health in a sample of Australian older adults: a longitudinal study. Soc Sci Med. 2011;73:1105–1112.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
31.Wang, JL, Smailes, E, Sareen, J, Fick, GH, Schmitz, N, Patten, SB. The prevalence of mental disorders in the working population over the period of global economic crisis. Can J Psychiatry. 2010;55(9):598–605.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
32.Bartley, M Unemployment and ill health: understanding the relationship. J Epidemiol Community Health. 1994;48:333–337.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
33.Astell-Burt, T, Feng, X. Health and the 2008 economic recession: evidence from the United Kingdom. PLoS One. 2013;8(2):e56674.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
34.De Moortel, D, Vandenheede, H, Vanroelen, C. Contemporary employment arrangements and mental well-being in men and women across Europe: a cross-sectional study. Int J Equity Health. 2014;13(1): 90. doi: 10.1186/s12939-014-0090-6.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
35.Paul, KI, Moser, K. Unemployment impairs mental health: meta-analyses. J Vocat Behav. 2009;74(3):264–282.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
36.Dunlop, BW, Mletzko, T. Will current socioeconomic trends produce a depressing future for men? Br J Psychiatry. 2011;198(3):167–168. doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.110.084210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
37.Piccinelli, M, Wilkinson, G. Gender differences in depression: critical review. Br J Psych. 2000;177(6):486–492. doi: 10.1192/bjp.177.6.486.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
38.Economou, M, Angelopoulos, E, Peppou, LE, et al. Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in Greece during the economic crisis: an update. World Psychiatry. 2016;15(1): 83–84.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
39.Economou, M, Peppou, L, Souliotis, K, et al. An association of economic hardship with depression and suicidality in times of recession in Greece. Psychiatry Res. 2019;279:172–179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
40.Gili, M, Garcia Campayo, J, Roca, M. Economic crisis and mental health. SESPAS report 2014. Gac Sanit. 2014;28(1):104–108. doi: 10.1016/j.gaceta.2014.02.005.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
41.Rodrigues, DFS, Nunes, C. Inpatient profile of patients with major depression in Portuguese National Health System Hospitals, in 2008 and 2013: variation in a time of economic crisis. Community Ment Health J. 2018;54(2):224–235.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
42.Mattei, G, Ferrari, S, Pingani, L, Rigatelli, M. Short-term effects of the 2008 great recession on the health of the Italian population: an ecological study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2014;49(6):851–858. doi: 10.1007/s00127-014-0818-z.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
43.Asgeirsdottir, HG, Asgeirsdottir, TL, Nyberg, U, et al. Suicide attempts and self-harm during a dramatic national economic transition: a population-based study in Iceland. Eur J Public Health. 2017;27(2):339–345. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/ckw137.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
44.Merzagora, I, Mugellini, G, Amadasi, A, et al. Suicide risk and the economic crisis: an exploratory analysis of the case of Milan. PLoS One. 2016;11(12): e0166244.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
45.Basta, M, Vgontzas, A, Kastanaki, A, et al. Suicide rates in Crete, Greece during the economic crisis: the effect of age, gender, unemployment and mental health service provision. BMC Psychiatry. 2018;18(1):356. doi: 10.1186/s12888-018-1931-4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
46.Baumbach, A, Gulis, G. Impact of financial crisis on selected health outcomes in Europe. Eur J Public Health. 2014;24(3):399–403. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/cku042.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
47.Alvarez-Galvez, J, Salinas-Perez, JA, Rodero-Cosano, ML, et al. Methodological barriers to studying the association between the economic crisis and suicide in Spain. BMC Public Health. 2017;17:694.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
48.Borrell, C, Marí-Dell’Olmo, M, Gotsens, M, et al. Socioeconomic inequalities in suicide mortality before and after the economic recession in Spain. BMC Public Health. 2017;17:772.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
49.Benioudakis, ES, Lykiardopoulos, V, Georgiou, V, et al. Suicide attempts and their interrelation with the economic crisis in Chania, Greece: a time-series analysis of the period 2008–2015. Prim Care Companion CNS Disord. 2017;19(1). doi: 10.4088/PCC.16m02035.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
50.Alexopoulos, EC, Kavalidou, K, Messolora, F. Suicide mortality patterns in Greek work force before and during the economic crisis. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019;16(3):469. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16030469.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
51.Christodoulou, C, Efstathiou, V, Michopoulos, I, et al. The economic crisis in Greece and its impact on the seasonality of suicides in the Athens greater area. Psychiatry Investig. 2017;14(1):16–20.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
52.Barr, B, Taylor-Robinson, D, Scott-Samuel, A, et al. Suicides associated with the 2008–10 economic recession in England: time trend analysis. BMJ 2012;345:e5142. doi: 10.1136/bmj.e5142.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
53.Houle, JN, Light, MT. The home foreclosure crisis and rising suicide rates, 2005 to 2010. Am J Public Health. 2014;104(6):1073–1079.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
54.Chan, CH, Caine, ED, You, S, et al. Suicide rates among working-age adults in South Korea before and after the 2008 economic crisis. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2014;68(3):246–252.CrossRefGoogle Scholar