Examining Welfare Receipt and Mental Disorders After a Decade of Reform and Prosperity: Analysis of the 2007 National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing

Abstract

Income support recipients are much more likely to experience mental disorders than those not receiving payments and there has been little change in the strength of the association between income support receipt and mental disorders over the past decade. Mental disorders represent a substantial barrier to work, community engagement and social participation. A greater focus on mental health in the design and delivery of social policy and services may be an appropriate strategy to promote more positive outcomes in areas such as welfare, employment and social inclusion.

The prevalence and correlates of psychological distress in Australian tertiary students compared to their community peers

“…While VET students with low incomes, like their non-student peers, had a greater risk of high distress, there was no significant association between low income and psychological distress in university students. The results for VET students and non-students are consistent with the substantial evidence that relatively low income, an indicator of low socio-economic status, is associated with mental disorders in the wider community (Butterworth et al, 2011;Fryers et al, 2003;Muntaner et al, 2004). However, given the significant association of psychological distress with financial problems, it is somewhat surprising that low personal income was not also associated with psychological distress in university students.…”

Disability income support design and mental illnesses: a review of Australia and Ontario

“…Despite calls for greater focus on mental illnesses in policy design [29][30][31] , our results demonstrate that there is limited evidence relating to policy design for disability income support and mental illnesses in Australia and Ontario. The evidence that is available overwhelmingly suggests that disability income support, especially the assessment process, is not adequately designed for mental illnesses.…”

The impact of welfare to work on parents and their children

“…While they did find significant increases in the rates of mental health problems amongst partnered parents the authors concluded this was due to changes in the data collection methodology rather than true changes in the population (Butterworth et al 2011).…”