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Socio-economic status and emotional distress of female Turkish immigrants and native German women living in Berlin

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2020

M.C. Aichberger ,
Z. Bromand ,
A. Heredia Montesinos ,
S. Temur-Erman ,
A. Mundt ,
A. Heinz ,
M.A. Rapp  and
M. Schouler-Ocak
M.C. Aichberger*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at St Hedwig Hospital, Charité – University Medicine Berlin, Große Hamburger Straße 5–11, 10115Berlin, Germany
Z. Bromand
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at St Hedwig Hospital, Charité – University Medicine Berlin, Germany
A. Heredia Montesinos
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at St Hedwig Hospital, Charité – University Medicine Berlin, Germany
S. Temur-Erman
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at St Hedwig Hospital, Charité – University Medicine Berlin, Germany
A. Mundt
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Day Hospital, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at St Hedwig Hospital, Charité – University Medicine Berlin, Germany
A. Heinz
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité – Berlin, Germany
M.A. Rapp
Affiliation:
Geriatric Psychiatry Center, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at St Hedwig Hospital, Charité – University Medicine Berlin, Germany
M. Schouler-Ocak
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at St Hedwig Hospital, Charité – University Medicine Berlin, Germany
*
*Corresponding Author. E-mail address:marion.aichberger@charite.de (M. Aichberger)
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Abstract

Background

Many immigrants face more economic strains and hardship than non-immigrants. Income inequality and an increasing social gap between immigrants and non-immigrants in Europe warrant further studies on the impact of socioeconomic factors on health in immigrant groups. The purpose of this study was to examine the association of socioeconomic status (SES) and emotional distress in women of Turkish descent and in women of German descent.

Methods and Subjects

A total of 405 women of German or Turkish descent residing in Berlin were interviewed. Emotional distress was assessed by the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28), and SES was examined by level of education, employment status, and income. The associations of emotional distress and SES were estimated in multivariate linear regression analyses.

Results

Unemployment was associated with increased levels of emotional distress in all women, with the highest level of distress in the group of unemployed Turkish women. The overall SES level was related to a greater level of emotional distress in Turkish women, but not in German women (−3.2, 95%CI −5.9 – −.5; p = .020 vs. −.8, 95%CI −2.7 – 1.2; p = .431). Further stratified analyses by relationship status revealed that the association of SES and emotional distress only remained significant among single women.

Conclusion

The impact of socioeconomic hardship appears to be complicated by social roles and expectations related to these. Further in-depth study of the complex nature of the interaction of social roles and socioeconomic position in female Turkish immigrants in Germany is needed to better understand differing risk patterns for emotional distress.

Keywords

Female Turkish immigrantsSocioeconomic statusPoverty riskUnemploymentEmotional distress
Type
Research Article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 27 , Issue S2: Migration and Mental Health , June 2012 , pp. S10 - S16
Copyright
Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS

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