Sociocultural factors in depression in Asian Indian women

Depression is a pervasive illness with a wide distribution and is reported to be statistically more prevalent among women. The present study was undertaken to seek an understanding of depression in a sample of Asian Indian women. The research questions were (a) What sociocultural factors do adult depressed Indian women report as influences in the depression, and (b) how do these reported factors influence their treatment-seeking behavior? The setting was Madurai, India. The purposive, convenience sample comprised 30 Tamil-speaking married or widowed Hindu women ranging in age from 26 to 65 who had been diagnosed with depression. Tape-recorded interviews were conducted. Content analysis was completed on the data. Results indicate that cultural dictation of female role and lack of continued financial and emotional support, predominantly from spouses and other family members, were influential factors in depression. These along with religion and philosophy often influenced the decision to seek health care.