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strongly associated with increased levels of depression. They also found that people who were more depressed were likely to drink more alcohol to cope with their situation. There was a direct association between chronic financial strain and increasing drinking as a coping strategy. Hence, people who are under financial stress may drink more alcohol both because they are depressed and because they believed that drinking provided some direct relief from the stress. It is very clear that being financially stressed puts one at increased risk of becoming depressed, or at least increasing the number of depressive symptoms one exhibits. Depression is not simply sadness or laziness. Depression is a serious mental disorder that not only robs people of their joy of life, but it also has significant motivational, cognitive, and behavioural consequences. People who are depressed become hopelessly mired in a worldview where it seems that nothing they can do will change anything; where getting out of bed in the morning is the most difficult thing to do; and where one expects the worst and is not surprised when bad things keep happening. Research indicates that people who are depressed are motivationally crippled (i.e., they have no energy to try), and they see the world through a pessimistic lens. There are also clear physiological and neurochemical changes in depressed persons. Classic symptoms of depression include difficulties falling and staying asleep, loss of pleasure and interest in things (e.g., sex), increased irritability, and chronic feelings of tiredness or fatigue. It is important to recognize and deal with the symptoms of depression. Given the impact that depression has on an individual, it is not surprising that once a person is depressed, its effects permeate through his or her interactions with others, and any other activities the individual is trying to carry out (e.g., work, parenting). All of these effects serve to perpetuate the depression. Even family members tend to avoid interactions with the depressed person (Coyne et al., 1987; Nolen-Hoeksema & Davis, 1999). 13
Financial Stress and the Marriage Relationship In addition to the effects that financial stress have on mental and physical health, financial stress also has an adverse effect on marital relationships. Several studies indicate that as financial stress increases, couples argue more – particularly over money. Such effects were alluded to earlier in Pittman and Lloyd’s study (1988), which found that greater financial stress was associated with lower satisfaction with marriage. Conger, Reuter, and Conger (2000), in their study of rural Iowans, found that greater financial pressure was associated with lower marital satisfaction and greater marital instability. They suggest that as financial pressures increase, couples become preoccupied with financial issues, and their perceived lack of control over the situation often leads to frustration, anger, and general demoralization. As individuals become more depressed, they withdraw more from their spouse, offering less emotional support and spend more time arguing and blaming each other. Similarly, for urban American couples, Fox and Chancey (1998) found that financial pressure and partners’ level of job insecurity were related to decreased self-esteem and satisfaction with the marriage and to increased marital trouble and family conflict. In the Fox and Chancey study, family conflict was assessed in terms of participant reports of physical and verbal aggression between partners, and between parents and children. As financial stress increased, couples were more likely to fight and more likely to break up. Overall, couples experiencing greater levels of financial pressure report lower levels of support for each other. Lorenz, Conger, and Montague (1994) found that financial pressure was modestly associated with decreased levels of social support within the family. Simons et al. (1993) measured social support through self and observer report and found that people under greater financial pressure tended to offer less emotional support to their spouse. Moreover, Conger, Ge, and Lorenz (1994) and Conger et al. (2000) found that financial pressure was associated with increased depressed mood for both partners, which in turn exacerbated an irritable and hostile style of interactions between the partners. It 14
Page 2 and 3: The Consequences of Financial Stres
Page 4 and 5: Foreword Twenty-seven years ago, I
Page 6 and 7: Executive Summary In this report we
Page 8 and 9: adolescents, particularly over the
Page 10 and 11: I. Introduction Stress is all aroun
Page 12 and 13: world (e.g., a fear of failing). St
Page 14 and 15: described the effects of chronic po
Page 16 and 17: assume that those who complete the
Page 18 and 19: terms of mental and physical health
Page 20 and 21: Price, Choi, and Vinokur (2002), in
Page 24 and 25: was the depression and hostility th
Page 26 and 27: In a subsequent report based on the
Page 28 and 29: problems could be traced back to th
Page 30 and 31: anxious, exhibit behaviour problems
Page 32 and 33: are employed and less time spent lo
Page 34 and 35: the lynchpin, then this suggests th
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