FUNDAMENTAL FACTS ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH 2016

3. Social factors associated with
mental health problems
There are a number of factors known
to be associated with mental health
problems, with effects that have the
potential to persist and cumulate across
generations. Mental health problems
can both result from social factors
like poverty and unemployment, and
increase one’s likelihood of experiencing
these factors, especially where support
is lacking or inadequate. In this section,
we highlight some of the more pervasive
yet intervenable factors, with particular
attention given to the socioeconomic
factors that contribute to mental health
inequalities.
3.1 Introduction
Certain population subgroups are
at a higher risk of mental health
problems because of greater exposure
and vulnerability to unfavourable
social, economic, and environmental
circumstances, which intersect with
factors including gender, ethnicity
and disability; and lesser access to
protective resources. Please see Figure
1 in the ‘Introduction to the 2016
edition of Fundamental Facts’ section
to understand how these processes can
interact.
3.2 Social determinants of
mental health
• WHO defines social determinants of
health as the circumstances in which
people are born, grow, live, work and
age. These conditions are influenced
by the distribution of money, power
and resources operating at global,
national and local levels. 359
• Increasingly, it is recognised that
these conditions impact mental
(as well as physical) health. Recent
research highlights the extent
to which life circumstances can
determine mental health and create
inequalities between societies and
communities. 360,361
• Although genetic and biological
factors are important influences on
mental health, this section focuses
on social factors, which occur
on individual, family, community
and societal levels. They include
factors such as household income,
educational attainment, material
circumstances, employment, social
support/isolation and gender. 362
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