Social network analysis of psychological morbidity in an urban slum of Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study based on a community census
Objectives To test whether social ties play any roles in mitigating depression and anxiety, as well as in fostering mental health among young men living in a poor urban community. - Setting A cohort of all young men living in an urban slum in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. - Participants All men...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article (Journal) |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
July 16, 2018
|
| In: |
BMJ open
Year: 2018, Volume: 8, Issue: 7 |
| ISSN: | 2044-6055 |
| DOI: | 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-020180 |
| Online Access: | Verlag, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-020180 Verlag: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/8/7/e020180 
|
| Author Notes: | Atonu Rabbani, Nabila Rahman Biju, Ashfique Rizwan, Malabika Sarker |
| Summary: | Objectives To test whether social ties play any roles in mitigating depression and anxiety, as well as in fostering mental health among young men living in a poor urban community. - Setting A cohort of all young men living in an urban slum in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. - Participants All men aged 18-29 years (n=824) living in a low-income urban community at the time of the survey. - Primary and secondary outcome measures Unspecified psychological morbidity measured using the General Health Questionnaire, 12-item (GHQ-12), where lower scores suggest better mental status. - Results The GHQ scores (mean=9.2, SD=4.9) suggest a significant psychological morbidity among the respondents. However, each additional friend is associated with a 0.063 SD lower GHQ score (95% CI −0.106 to −0.021). Between centrality measuring the relative importance of the respondent within his social network is also associated with a 0.103 SD lower GHQ score (95% CI −0.155 to −0.051), as are other measures of social network ties. Among other factors, married respondents and recent migrants also report a better mental health status. - Conclusions Our results underscore the importance of social connection in providing a buffer against stress and anxiety through psychosocial support from one’s peers in a resource-constraint urban setting. Our findings also suggest incorporating a social network and community ties in designing mental health policies and interventions. |
|---|---|
| Item Description: | Gesehen am 18.05.2020 |
| Physical Description: | Online Resource |
| ISSN: | 2044-6055 |
| DOI: | 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-020180 |