Life Satisfaction Factors, Stress, and Depressive Symptoms among Young Women Living in Urban Kampala: Findings from the TOPOWA Project Pilot Studies

Rachel E. Culbreth, Karen E. Nielsen, Kate Mobley, Jane Palmier, Paul Bukuluki and Monica H. Swahn ()
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Rachel E. Culbreth: American College of Medical Toxicology, 10645 N. Tatum Blvd, Phoenix, AZ 85028, USA
Karen E. Nielsen: School of Public Health, Georgia State University, 140 Decatur Street, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA
Kate Mobley: School of Data Science and Analytics, College of Computing and Software Engineering, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA 30144, USA
Jane Palmier: Wellstar College of Health and Human Services, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA 30144, USA
Paul Bukuluki: School of Social Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala P.O. Box 7062, Uganda
Monica H. Swahn: Wellstar College of Health and Human Services, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA 30144, USA

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 2, 1-13

Abstract: Young women living in Kampala, Uganda, often face adversities related to Social Determinants of Mental Health (SDoMH) including poverty, food scarcity, environmental stressors such as high levels of community violence, and lack of adequate healthcare access. Two consecutive pilot studies were conducted to assess the feasibility and acceptability of survey questions, wearable fitness trackers, and daily diaries before launching a larger prospective cohort study. Preliminary associations between SDoMH factors with depressive symptoms, stress levels, and life satisfaction were examined among the total sample of 60 women across two pilot studies. A total of 32.2% of respondents (out of n = 59) reported being depressed most or all of the time in the past 30 days. Frequent depressive symptoms correlated with food insecurity ( χ 2 = 5.38, df = 1, p = 0.02). Higher stress levels were significantly associated with lower overall life satisfaction scores ( t = 2.74, df = 6.20, p = 0.03). Additionally, frequent depressive symptoms were associated with lower satisfaction scores in the living conditions and lifestyle domain ( t = 2.22, df = 36.18, p = 0.03). However, overall life satisfaction scores and other domains (social relationships and personal independence) were not statistically associated with frequent depressive symptoms. Identifying the most impactful SDoMH factors among young women in Kampala can inform targeted approaches to improve mental health outcomes.

Keywords: mental health; young women; social determinants of health; urban health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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