Intersectionality of Race, Gender, and Common Mental Disorders in Northeastern Brazil

This study applies the perspective of intersectionality, defined as social identities combining with one another and with structural societal factors to produce health inequities, to assess the interaction between race, gender, and common mental disorders (CMD) in northeastern Brazil. The Self-Reporting Questionnaire was used to assess CMD among a representative sample of adults in Feira de Santana, Bahia, Brazil (N=3273). Four groups (Black men, Black women, White women, White men) represented the intersection of race and gender. We used a Chi square test to compare the four groups and Poisson regressions to determine prevalence ratios (PR). White men had the lowest prevalence of CMD (11.1%) and Black women had the highest (37.2%). After adjusting for covariates, Black women had a statistically significantly higher prevalence of CMD than White men (PR=2.43; 95% CI: 1.39-4.25), though the prevalence among White women was not statistically significantly different from White men (PR=1.74; 95% CI: .93-3.30). Interaction tests were conducted on the multiplicative and additive scale, although the results were not statistically significant. These findings indicate that the experience of being both Black and a woman in Brazil is associated with elevated prevalence of CMD. Programs and interventions are needed to address this burden and research is needed to further explore its cause.