Mental Health and Its Related Factors in Young Women in Kashan City

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran

Abstract

Introduction: Women are more susceptible to mental disorders than men. Promoting women's mental health leads to promote the mental health of the family and the community. This study was designed to evaluate the mental health and its related factors of the young women living in Kashan city.
 
Methods and Material: Four hundred women aged 20-40 years were participated in this cross sectional study. The participants were selected through cluster sampling from different regions of Kashan city (center of Iran). Informed consents were obtained from all the participants. Their mental health was evaluated by using General Health Questionnaire (28-item). We also used a comprehensive demographic questionnaire to evaluate the related factors, which included some questions regarding the: age, age at the time of marriage, marital status, age at the time of the first delivery, number of children, age discrepancy with the husbands, and history of mental disorders and physical diseases. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 11and Descriptive statistical tests and Chi square test.
 
Results: Forty percent of the participants had psychopathology on the basis of the scores they obtained after answering the General Health Questionnaire. The women had more mean scores in two subscales; anxiety (9/23), and somatic symptoms (8/68). Mental health of women had significant relationship with age, number of children, age discrepancy with their husbands, socioeconomic status,education level and history of mental disorders and physical diseases (P<0/05) Women's mental health had not significant relationship with marital status, age at the time of marriage, and employment (P>0.05)
 
Conclusion: Mental disorder is prevalent in women in Kashan city. Multicenter studies are proposed to assess women's mental health in other parts of Iran in order to find the prevalence, the contributing factors, and treat the affected individuals.

Keywords

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