Prevalence of depressive symptoms in university students from Germany, Denmark, Poland and Bulgaria
- PMID: 18038173
- DOI: 10.1007/s00127-007-0282-0
Prevalence of depressive symptoms in university students from Germany, Denmark, Poland and Bulgaria
Abstract
Background: Previous research indicated a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms among students from Eastern European countries than students from Western European countries. This difference was thought to be linked to political and economic instabilities resulting from political changes in the early 1990s. We investigated whether these differences persist 15 years later.
Methods: Using data from a general health survey among first year students (N = 2,651) from two Western (Germany and Denmark) and two Eastern European countries (Poland and Bulgaria), our analysis was restricted to 2,146 students below 23 years of age. Depressive symptoms were measured using the Modified Beck Depression Inventory (M-BDI). The recommended cut-off point of the M-BDI for depression screening in the general population is a score of > or =35. Perceived income sufficiency was measured on a four-point scale from "totally sufficient" to "not sufficient at all". Analysis of variance and logistic regression were performed to assess the differences in depressive symptoms between countries adjusting for income sufficiency.
Results: Depressive symptoms were more prevalent in Eastern European than Western European countries (M-BDI scores of > or =35 in Germany 26.7%/22.8%, in Denmark 24.9%/12.1%, in Poland 45.5%/27.3%, in Bulgaria 42.9%/33.8% for female and male students, respectively). There was an association between income perceived as insufficient and higher levels of depressive symptoms, but it did not differ across the countries. Adjusting for perceived income sufficiency had little effect on differences in the prevalence of depressive symptoms across countries.
Conclusions: The difference in prevalence of depressive symptoms in university students from Eastern and Western European countries persists 15 years after political changes have taken place and cannot be explained by differences in perceived sufficiency of income.
Similar articles
-
Depressive symptoms and perceived burdens related to being a student: Survey in three European countries.Clin Pract Epidemiol Ment Health. 2008 Jul 3;4:19. doi: 10.1186/1745-0179-4-19. Clin Pract Epidemiol Ment Health. 2008. PMID: 18598340 Free PMC article.
-
Are perceived stress, depressive symptoms and religiosity associated with alcohol consumption? A survey of freshmen university students across five European countries.Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2012 May 28;7:21. doi: 10.1186/1747-597X-7-21. Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2012. PMID: 22640549 Free PMC article.
-
Food consumption frequency and perceived stress and depressive symptoms among students in three European countries.Nutr J. 2009 Jul 15;8:31. doi: 10.1186/1475-2891-8-31. Nutr J. 2009. PMID: 19604384 Free PMC article.
-
Prevalence of depression among university students in low and middle income countries (LMICs): a systematic review and meta-analysis.J Affect Disord. 2020 Sep 1;274:911-919. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2020.03.183. Epub 2020 May 24. J Affect Disord. 2020. PMID: 32664032 Review.
-
Prevalence of Depression, Depressive Symptoms, and Suicidal Ideation Among Medical Students: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JAMA. 2016 Dec 6;316(21):2214-2236. doi: 10.1001/jama.2016.17324. JAMA. 2016. PMID: 27923088 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation modulates masseter muscle activity, pain perception, and anxiety levels in university students: a double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial.Front Integr Neurosci. 2024 Jul 10;18:1422312. doi: 10.3389/fnint.2024.1422312. eCollection 2024. Front Integr Neurosci. 2024. PMID: 39051059 Free PMC article.
-
Moderated moderation modelling of subjective social status, pocket money and depressive symptoms of university students in Ghana.Front Public Health. 2024 Apr 4;12:1325441. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1325441. eCollection 2024. Front Public Health. 2024. PMID: 38638481 Free PMC article.
-
Prediction of the efficacy of group cognitive behavioral therapy using heart rate variability based smart wearable devices: a randomized controlled study.BMC Psychiatry. 2024 Mar 6;24(1):187. doi: 10.1186/s12888-024-05638-x. BMC Psychiatry. 2024. PMID: 38448895 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.
-
Depression Among Medical Students of Karachi A Cross Sectional Study.MedEdPublish (2016). 2019 Sep 18;8:181. doi: 10.15694/mep.2019.000181.1. eCollection 2019. MedEdPublish (2016). 2019. PMID: 38089272 Free PMC article.
-
Psychological Health and Risk Factors of College Students within the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study.Behav Sci (Basel). 2023 Sep 26;13(10):796. doi: 10.3390/bs13100796. Behav Sci (Basel). 2023. PMID: 37887446 Free PMC article.
References
Publication types
MeSH terms
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical