 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Sheryl Pimlott-Kubiak, PhD, School of Social Work, Wayne State University, 4756 Cass Ave., Detroit, MI 48202 and Kristine Siefert, PhD, MPH, NIMH Research Center on Poverty, Risk, and Mental Health, The University of Michigan, 1080 S. University, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, (734) 763-6201, ksiefert@umich.edu.
Although most women offenders are convicted of drug-related offenses, their mental health is understudied. Moreover, although racial bias has led to the overrepresentation of African American women in this population, research on their mental health is even more sparse. Understanding racial differences in the mental health needs of women offenders is important, and depression is of particular concern as it is highly comorbid with substance abuse and adversely affects social and vocational functioning.
We studied the prevalence and correlates of depression in 74 African American and white women convicted of a felony drug offense. Data were obtained from public court records of all women convicted of a drug offense in a single midwestern county. To better represent the larger population of women offenders, the study was limited to women who were living in the community and actively parenting a minor child. Face-to-face interviews were used to examine a broad array of factors known to confer increased risk of depression, which was measured using theWH0 CIDI-SF.
Although exposure to trauma strongly predicted depression in African American women, none of the stressors predicted depression in white women, despite a higher prevalence of depression. African American women had significantly higher rates of material hardship and cared for more children who were not their biological offspring. White women had significantly lower self-ratings of mastery. Social support decreased risk of depression for white women, but increased risk for African American women. These findings have implications for mental health screening, treatment, and preventive intervention.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Mental Health, Special Populations
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.