Employment Industry and Occupational Class in Relation to Serious Psychological Distress in the United States

Abstract

Occupational characteristics may influence serious psychological distress (SPD) and contribute to health inequities; yet, few studies have examined multiple employment industries and occupational classes in a large, racially diverse sample of the United States. Using data from the National Health Interview Survey, we investigated employment industry and occupational class in relation to SPD in the overall population and by race/ethnicity, gender, age, household income, and health status. We created eight employment industry categories: professional/administrative/management, agricultural/manufacturing/construction, retail trade, finance/information/real estate, educational services, health care/social assistance, accommodation/food services, and public administration/arts/other services. We also created three occupational class categories: professional/management, support services, and laborers. SPD was measured using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale and scores ≥13 indicated SPD. We adjusted for confounders and used Poisson regression to estimate prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Among the 245,038 participants, the mean age was 41.7 ± 0.1 years, 73% were Non-Hispanic (NH)-White, and 1.5% were categorized as having SPD. Compared to the professional/administrative/management industry, working in other industries (e.g., manufacturing/construction (PR = 0.82 [95% CI: 0.70–0.95]) and educational services (PR = 0.79 [95% CI: 0.66–0.94])) was associated with lower SPD. Working in support services and laborer versus professional/management positions were both associated with 19% higher prevalence of SPD (95% CI: 1.04–1.35; 95% CI: 1.04–1.38, respectively). Furthermore, working in a support services or laborer versus professional/management position was associated with higher SPD in most employment industries. Industry-specific workplace interventions to equitably improve mental health are warranted.

Relationships between diversity demographics, psychological distress, and suicidal thinking in the veterinary profession: a nationwide cross-sectional study during COVID-19

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“…Additionally, we also found that those people who met criteria for psychological distress were 5 times more likely to endorse suicidal thinking. The K6 instrument is a very brief tool that has been widely used with many populations ( 41 , 65 , 89 ). It is free and open access ( 90 ).…”

Work, Health, and the Ongoing Pursuit of Health Equity

“…The authors use study designs and logics derived from epidemiology, community-based (participatory) research, and the social sciences, employing qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods approaches to gather their data and undertake their analyses. As we considered the research, we categorized it into three general but not mutually exclusive content groupings, as follows: Studies that highlight the ways in which work interacts with other social phenomena to influence health [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]; Studies that focus on the context in which work happens and emphasize the importance of that context in shaping work or health [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]; Studies that encourage us to think more expansively about work [ 10 , 11 ]. …”

“…Studies that highlight the ways in which work interacts with other social phenomena to influence health [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ];…”