Coping and financial strain as predictors of mental illness in over-indebted individuals in Sweden

• This cross-sectional study examined psychological mechanisms in order to increase knowledge regarding mental illness amongst 561 over-indebted individuals in Sweden. Differences were explored between individuals with probable clinical depression and/or anxiety and individuals without probable clinical depression and/or anxiety, considering objective measures of the debt, financial strain, coping strategies as well as sociodemographic variables. Furthermore, binary logistic regression analyses were performed in order to construct a model of predictors of mental illness. In order to collect the data, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced (COPE_, as well as questions formulated by the research team, were used as measures. Prominent results showed that over-indebted individuals with probable clinical depression and/or anxiety were younger, showed greater levels of financial strain, used adaptive coping strategies to a lesser extent, and maladaptive coping strategies to a greater extent. Additionally, financial strain, use of maladaptive and emotion-focused coping, age and employment status were significant predictors of mental illness. These results put emphasis on the importance of adaptive coping as well as the psychological exposure of over-indebted individuals. 

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Psykologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Psychology (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Psykologi -- Tillämpad psykologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Psychology -- Applied Psychology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

anxiety

coping

depression

financial strain

Over-indebtedness

anxiety

coping

depression

financial strain

Over-indebtedness

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)