The Impact of Spousal Migration on the Mental Health of Nepali Women

A Cross-Sectional Study

Bibliographic Data

ID15465407
AuthorsNirmal Aryal (0000-0002-4835-0785, Bournemouth University, corresponding author), Pramod Regmi (0000-0003-0226-3894, Tribhuvan University), Edwin Van Teijlingen (0000-0001-5523-8583, Pokhara University), Steve Trenoweth (0000-0001-8342-499X, Bournemouth University), Steven Trenoweth (Bournemouth University), Pratik Adhikary (0000-0003-1678-1692, University of California, Berkeley), Padam Simkhada (0000-0002-5706-6479, University of Huddersfield)
Year2020
Volume17
Issue4
Pages1292-1292
Publication date2020-02-17
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1661-7827 • E-ISSN: 1660-4601
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/ijerph17041292
PMID32079358
OpenAlexW3005709041
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited17

Spousal separation, lack of companionship, and increased household responsibilities may trigger mental health problems in left-behind female spouses of migrant workers. This study aimed to examine mental ill-health risk in the left-behind female spouses of international migrant workers in Nepal. A cross-sectional survey was carried out in the Nawalparasi district. Study areas were purposively chosen; however, participants were randomly selected. Nepali versions of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) were used. Mental ill-health risk was prevalent in 3.1% of the participants as determined by GHQ. BDI identified mild or moderate depression in 6.5% of the participants with no one having severe depression. In bivariate analysis, a high frequency of communication with the husband was associated with lower mental ill-health risk and depression, as well as increasing resilience. Reduced return intervals of husbands and a high frequency of remittance were also associated with a low GHQ score. In a multiple regression model, adjusting for potential confounding variables, participants who communicated with their husbands at least once a day had a greater mean CD-RISC score (i.e., high resilience against mental ill-health risk) compared to those who did so at least once a week; a mean difference of 3.6 (95% CI 0.4 to 6.9), P = 0.03. To conclude, a low mental ill-health risk was found in the female spouses of migrants

Anxiety · Beck Depression Inventory · Cross-sectional study · Depression (economics · General Health Questionnaire · Mental health · Nepali · Psychiatry · Clinical Psychology · Demography · Employment and Welfare Studies · Health disparities and outcomes · Medicine · Migration, Health and Trauma · Psychology

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access