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Biomedical subjects

W M Ensel

Publications and source records attributed to W M Ensel.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2000

Age, the stress process, and physical distress: the role of distal stressors.

OBJECTIVES: This article examines the nature of distal stressors over a 15-year period and the extent to which they contribute to the explanation of additional variation in the life stress model. METHODS: The study uses data collected from a community sample of adults to test specific hypotheses. RESULTS: Findings show that (a) distal stressors significantly increase variance explained in physical symptoms and maintain a direct effect on physical symptoms, (b) recent stressors mediate the effects of distal stressors on distress, and (c) social resources have direct and mediating effects on physical distress. Variations exist for different age groups or life stages. DISCUSSION: The implications of the findings are discussed in the context of life course, theoretical issues of temporality, types of stressors, and the role of social resources. The major conclusion is that there are multiple pathways to distress that differ for different stages in the life course.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1999

Social support and depressed mood: a structural analysis.

Current literature on social support identifies social structure as a source of distress. However, past efforts tend to operationalize structure in terms of demographic characteristics. The present paper argues that structure should be conceived of as participation and involvement in community and social relations. Structure may include community ties, social networks and intimate ties. We hypothesize that the three elements represent the outer layer (belongingness), the intermediary layer (bonding), and the inner layer (binding) of social relations and should exhibit differentiated effects on mental health. We further hypothesize that these structural elements, in sequence, provide functional (i.e., instrumental-expressive, perceived-received, and routine-non-routine) supports which, in turn, prevent or protect against distress. Using data from the 1993-1994 Albany survey, we construct measures for elements of structural and functional support to test the relationship between the two as well as their effects on depression. Results confirm that elements of structural support, as predicted, differentially affect functional supports, and that the elements of both structural and functional supports exert direct effects on depression. Further, structural supports also exert indirect effects on depression, mediated by functional supports.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Stress in the life course: a life history approach.

This article examines the relationship between stress and distress in the life course, emphasizing the time elapsed between the event and measurement of psychological distress. Stressors are conceptualized as either distal or proximal based on how recently they occurred. Distal stressors are further classified as status changes or undesirable life changes. Using a life history calendar approach, we examine stressors occurring over a 15-year-period. We explore whether distal stressors affect current depressive symptomatology above and beyond the effect of more recent stressors and how these stressors vary in frequency and affect over 3 empirically defined age groups. While some events decrease in frequency over age, others occur consistently across age groups. Most important, distal stressors significantly impact current depressive symptomatology, independent of proximal stressors. Types of distal stressors affecting depression vary over age, indicating that the stage of life at which a stressor occurs is a significant determinant of the stressor's effect on depression.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

The life stress paradigm and psychological distress.

The paper focuses on two forces (stressors and resources) in the life stress process as they affect psychological distress. Utilizing three waves of panel data from a representative community sample in upstate New York, six causal models of the life stress process are tested with indicators of two types of stressors (social and physiological) and two types of resources (social and psychological). Both deterring and coping models are tested. Analysis shows that: (1) stressors and resources in the social environment have a direct impact on depressive symptoms, (2) social resources mediate the effects of social stressors on psychological distress, and (3) psychological resources indirectly affect distress by enhancing social resources. The critical role played by the social environment in the life stress process involving psychological distress is substantiated. The implications of these and other findings are discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1989

Measuring the communication of social support from adult children.

Further knowledge of the nature and significance of the relationships of elderly persons to their adult children requires the application of social support scales tapping the quality and content of their interactions. Scaling efforts must further address conceptual and operational specification, the differentiation of sources and dimensions of support, the objectification of self-report scales, and construct validity. Respondents to this survey are a community, stratified probability sample of adults aged 50 and older (N = 1,174). Measures employed include 2 items reflecting instrumental support and 17 items designed to tap Cobb's (1976) definition of expressive support as consisting of information that one is loved, esteemed, and embedded in a social relationship characterized by mutual caring and obligation. Factor analyses consistently discern one instrumental and three expressive dimensions of support: Caring and Concern, Social Integration, and Love and Affection. These subscales are differentially correlated with sociodemographic characteristics of the parents and adult children, as well as with depression and disability. Implications of these and other findings are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

The role of age in the relationship of gender and marital status to depression.

Research on sex and marital status differences in depression has grown rapidly in the last decade. However, little has been done to examine these relationships in a life course perspective. Utilizing a random community sample of adults in upstate New York, the current paper examines "male-female," as well as "married-unmarried" differences in depression, controlling for age. Generally, unmarried females are found to be the most depressed of all sex-marital status groupings. However, among the married, controlling for age, young married females (17 to 24) are found to be contributing the most to the role of depression in married women. Excluding this subgroup from computations, there is no significant difference in the mean level of depression between married men and women. A specific test of Gove's "sex role hypothesis" is presented and the feasibility of utilizing a "clinical caseness" cutoff point on the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale is examined. The implications of these and other findings are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

Social support scales: a methodological note.

The relationship between social support and depression has implications for researchers studying schizophrenia. In this article, the authors attempt to conceptualize social support and assess the reliability and validity of its various measures. They then evaluate the ability of social support, along with stressors, to explain psychiatric symptoms. Representative data from a community survey of adults, ages 17-70, suggest that social support measures show strong relationships to depression and other psychiatric symptoms. The implications of these and other findings for the study of schizophrenia are discussed.

Depressive Disorder↗