Gender Differences in the Association between Common Mental Disorders and Regional Deprivation in Ireland

Abstract

This article aims to add a gender and place perspective to our understanding of depression and anxiety (common mental disorders [CMDs]) through the use of multilevel models. To date, regional variations in the prevalence of CMDs in Ireland have not been explained adequately. Using data from the 2007 Quarterly National Household Survey special module on health and health service utilization, this article examines whether regional differences in CMDs persist after accounting for both individual and regional characteristics. The null model indicated that 2 percent of the variance in CMDs occurred at the regional level. Including contextual interaction variables, the level of variance at the regional level increased to 3.3 percent. Of specific interest to this article was the association between place-based deprivation and gender on CMDs at the regional level. This article found that although regional deprivation alone did not have a significant impact on CMDs, the interaction between female and regional relative deprivation was significant. Specifically, this means that women living in more deprived regions tend to have a greater number of CMDs.