Do Financial Constraints Affect Depressive Symptomatology Among Mid-Aged and Older Adults?

Abstract

The relationship between financial constraints and depressive symptomatology among adults aged 50 and greater was examined. The mediating effect of perceived control over one's financial circumstances on this relationship was assessed. Ordinary least square hierarchical regression models were estimated using data from the Health and Retirement Study. As an aggregated measure, financial constraints were positively associated with depression in mid-age and late life, and this relationship was partially accounted for by the pathway of perceived control over one's financial circumstances. When disaggregated as a measure, financial constraints at the individual level had a significant effect on depression, while financial constraints at the family and public levels did not have a significant effect. When added to the model, perceived control over one's financial circumstances had a significant effect on depressive symptomatology, financial constraints remained significant at the individual level.

Financial stress and depression in adults: A systematic review

“…Fourteen studies investigated the association between debt and depression and provided empirical evidence based on high-income countries (Europe and the US) and Chile. Three studies were cross-sectional and all of them reported a positive association between debt (assessed by student debt, the occurrence of any debt, or unsecured debt) and depressive symptoms after controlling for demographic and other socioeconomic factors [ 6 , 27 , 53 ]. Eleven longitudinal studies identified by this review investigated the association between debt and depression over time.…”

“…Various measures of debt were used in the reviewed studies such as the occurrence of debt [ 26 , 27 , 53 ], the amount of debt [ 6 , 14 , 26 , 28 , 53 ], and the debt-to-income ratio or debt-to-asset ratio [ 14 , 46 , 48 ]. The debt-depression relationship varies with different operationalisations of debt with the debt to asset ratio being a more reliable predictor of depression than the total debt.…”

“…The positive and significant association between perceived financial strain in childhood and depression in adults was found in both a cross-sectional study and a longitudinal study [42,47]. Using cross-sectional data from 19 European countries in 2014, Boe et al found that younger adults (25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39)(40) who had experienced financial difficulties as children had higher depression scores in adulthood, while older adults (over 40) did not [42]. A similar association between adverse childhood financial situation and adults' depression was also found in a longitudinal study [47].…”

“…The most commonly used measure for depression was the Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) [e.g., [26][27][28]. Various versions of the CES-D were used in the reviewed studies: six studies used the full version, that is, the 20-item CES-D; 19 studies used…”

An Interaction Effect of Life-Threatening Experience, Self-Efficacy, and Financial Resources on Quality of Life Among Chinese Middle-Aged and Older Women

“…Research has reported that financial stress is a trigger for the development of depressive symptoms among older Chinese women (Lin et al, 2011 ), and financial constraints significantly predict depression among middle-aged and older adults (Gillen et al, 2017 ). Unlike previous studies, the current study has found that household income alone was not a significant predictor of future quality of life.…”