Screening for psychiatric morbidity in men and women

This paper describes the use of the general health questionnaire (GHQ) to screen a random sample of men for psychiatric morbidity. The results are contrasted with those from the earlier Otago Women's Health Survey, an investigation into the sociodemographic determinants of psychiatric morbidity in Otago women. The level of psychiatric morbidity found in the men was equal to that found in the women which is in contrast to most overseas studies where men have been found to have lower levels of psychiatric morbidity to women. Significant differences were found in male and female demographic subgroups. High GHQ scores were found in separated, widowed and divorced men, men in higher socioeconomic status groups and those unemployed. High GHQ scores were found among the women aged 18-34, women who had never married, those in lower socioeconomic status groups and those unemployed. This study illustrates that gender needs to be considered alongside traditional sociodemographic factors when studying psychiatric morbidity and symptomatology.