Abstract
This study investigated how socioeconomic factors and psychosocial conditions are related to self-reported health among 43-year-old women representing the general Swedish population (N = 569). Odds ratios and multiple logistic regression analyses were used for associations and effect modification, adjusted for symptom reporting in adolescence. Poor self-reported health was predicted by low income, financial worries, and job strain, as well as combined exposure to a high level of unpaid household work and job strain (double burden). In conclusion, poor psychosocial conditions related to working life, as well as to the combined impact of paid and unpaid work were revealed to be risk factors for poor self-reported health among middle-aged women. These results highlight the need for improving women’s work conditions, as well as designing family policies that promote a better sharing of unpaid household tasks and responsibilities between spouses.
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This study was made possible by access to data from the longitudinal research programme Individual Development and Adaptation (IDA), initiated by David Magnusson and currently led by Lars R. Bergman at the Department of Psychology, Stockholm University. The research reported in this article was supported by grants from the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation, the Swedish Committee for the Planning and Co-ordination of Research, the Swedish Social Science Research Council and the Örebro County Council.
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Mellner, C., Krantz, G. & Lundberg, U. Symptom reporting and self-rated health among women in mid-life: The role of work characteristics and family responsibilities. Int. J. Behav. Med. 13, 1–7 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327558ijbm1301_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327558ijbm1301_1