Table 1.
Descriptive statistics for the analytic samples for each mental health outcome; No.(%) or M(SD)
| Mental Health Outcome |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Variable | Depression, generalized anxiety, and panic symptoms (n = 3,293) |
Problems related to alcohol use (n = 2,530) |
Problems reated to other substance use (n = 2,545) |
| Sociodemographic characteristics prior to The Great Recession (range or reference category) | |||
| Age in years (30–84) a | 54·5 (11·35) | 55·6 (11·23) | 55·5 (11·21) |
| Sex (Female) b | 1810 (55·0%) | 1421 (55·8%) | 1414 (55·9%) |
| Race-ethnicity (White) c | 3026 (91·9%) | 2361 (93·1%) | 2346 (93·0%) |
| Education (No college) d | 952 (29·0%) | 751 (29·5%) | 740 (29·3%) |
| Employment status (Not in paid work) e | 646 (19·6%) | 523 (24·9%) | 523 (25·0%) |
| Marital status (Not married or cohabiting) | 760 (23·1%) | 604 (23·7%) | 601 (23·8%) |
| Income per person (0–300,000), $/year f | 41,250 (34,185·8) | 40,806 (33,490·1) | 40,840 (33,481·1) |
| Financial advantage g | |||
| Current financial situation (0–10) g | 6·6 (2·09) | 6·6 (2·08) | 6·6 (2·08) |
| Enough money to meet needs (Not enough) g | 515 (15·6%) | 450 (17·8%) | 452 (18·0%) |
| Difficult to pay bills (Somewhat or Very) g | 735 (22·3%) | 625 (24·7%) | 624 (24·8%) |
| Prevalence of mental health outcomes | |||
| Symptoms of major depression at MIDUS-II | 393 (11·9%) | 293 (11·5%) | 291 (11·5%) |
| Symptoms of major depression at MIDUS-III | 397 (12·1%) | 286 (11·2%) | 284 (11·2%) |
| Symptoms of generalized anxiety at MIDUS-II | 89 (2·7%) | 61 (2·4%) | 61 (2·4%) |
| Symptoms of generalized anxiety at MIDUS-III | 84 (2·6%) | 57 (2·2%) | 56 (2·2%) |
| Symptoms of panic disorder at MIDUS-II | 356 (10·8%) | 256 (10·1%) | 258 (10·2%) |
| Symptoms of panic disorder at MIDUS-III | 340 (10·3%) | 244 (9·6%) | 247 (9·8%) |
| Problems related to alcohol use at MIDUS-II | 614 (18·6%) | 511 (20·3%) | 514 (20·3%) |
| Problems related to alcohol use at MIDUS-III | 515 (15·6%) | 473 (18·7%) | 481 (19·0%) |
| Problems related to substance use at MIDUS-II | 158 (4·8%) | 132 (5·2%) | 136 (5·4%) |
| Problems related to substance use at MIDUS-III | 114 (3·5%) | 101 (3·4%) | 99 (3·9%) |
Age in years was divided by ten and centered at the mean for analysis so regression coefficients in subsequent analyses can be interpreted as the effect corresponding to a ten-year age difference.
Sex was self-reported as male or female.
Race-ethnicity was based on self-reported main racial origins (parents, grandparents, and other ancestors), and was classified as white or minority.
Education was based on self-reported highest grade of school or year of college completed, and classified as up to and including graduation from high school (no college) or one or more years of college.
Employment status was based on self-reported employment situation in January 2008, and classified as working or self-employed (in paid work) or not in paid work.
Income per person was calculated as total household income divided by the number of people in the household and was standardized for analysis so regression coefficients in subsequent analyses can be interpreted as the effect corresponding to a one standard deviation difference in income.
Financial advantage was calculated as the sum of three standardized items: (a) “Using a scale from 0 to 10 where 0 means “the worst possible financial situation” and 10 means “the best possible financial situation,” how would you rate your financial situation these days?”; (b) “In general, would you say you (and your family living with you) have more money than you need [2], just enough for your needs [1], or not enough to meet your needs [0]?”; and (c) “How difficult is it for you (and your family) to pay your monthly bills?” rated from “very difficult” (1) to “not at all difficult” (4). This sum score was standardized for analyses so regression coefficients in subsequent analyses can be interpreted as the effect corresponding to a one standard deviation difference in financial advantage.
Note. MIDUS-II is the second wave of data from the Midlife in the United States study, collected in 2003–2004; MIDUS-III is the third wave, collected in 2012–2013.