Relación entre nivel socioeconómico, apoyo social percibido, género y depresión en niños

Abstract

Se realizó un estudio correlacional con una muestra de 593 escolares de 9 a 13 años, a quienes se les administró la adaptación argentina para niños del Cuestionario MOS de Apoyo Social (MOS-A) de Rodriguez Espínola (2009a). El cuestionario original fue construido por el grupo médico de estudios en apoyo social (The Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Surrey -MOS-SSS) dirigido por Sherbourne y Stewart (1991).También se administró la Versión Argentina de la Escala de Depresión para Niños y Adolescentes de Harter y Nowakowski (Richaud de Minzi, Sacchi & Moreno, 2001). El análisis MANOVA mostró diferencias estadísticamente significativas [ F de Hotelling (2, 590) = 11.37; p = .000] entre el nivel socioeconómico bajo y medio en la percepción de apoyo social total y estructural. La clase baja demostró menor apoyo social percibido y estructural que la clase media. La percepción de apoyo social según género no demostró diferencias significativas. Se pudo observar mediante un MANOVA que había diferencias en la depresión, según la percepción de apoyo social, categorizado en bajo, medio y alto [ F de Hotelling (8, 284) = 3.71; p = .000] . Los niños que percibieron alto apoyo social demostraron mayor estado de ánimo positivo, autovaloración positiva y menor energía-interés. Los distintos factores de depresión se relacionaron estadísticamente según el nivel socioeconómico medio y bajo [ F de Hotelling (4, 586) = 8.09; p = .000] . El grupo de clase baja puntuó menos en estado de ánimo positivo, en autovaloración positiva, en energía-interés y en autoinculpación, demostrando que estos niños se perciben más deprimidos que los de clase media. No se observaron diferencias con respecto a la depresión y el género.

People who has emotional difficulties characterized by depressive symptoms, observe difficulties in the social area, especially in the interpersonal relations. Across the social support there are received psychological and material resources in order that the subject could answer adequately. The socioeconomic characteristics would be important at the moment of adding resources to face to the depressive symptoms. The sample of the study remained constituted by 593 students of both sexes, from 9 to 13 years, 52.3% (n = 310) of masculine sex and 47.7% (n = 283) of feminine sex. 47.5% (n = 283) was children of schools of social-economic low class and 310 (52,5%) of middle class. The selected institutions concern to the province of Buenos Aires (República Argentina). There used the Questionnaire MOS of Social Support (Sherbourne & Stewart, 1991) that is centralized in the analysis of the perception of help. It is a question of a questionnaire auto administered of 20 items. The first item values structural support and the rest functional support. Also one administered the Argentine Version of the Scale of Depression for Children and Teenagers of Harterand Nowakowski (Richaud de Minzi, Sacchi, & Moreno, 2001). It is an auto report that includes five dimensions of the depression: lack of energy, negative auto-valuation, auto-accusation and sadness; every subscale has six items. And ad-hoc constructed an interview to obtain information socio-demographics of the children, such as age, sex and socioeconomic level. It was possible to observe by means of a MANOVA that there were significant differences in the depression, according to the perception of social support [ F (8, 284) = 3.71; p = .000] . The children who perceived high place social support demonstrated major positive state of mind (M = 12.60) in comparison with those that they perceived under social support (M = 10.59). Also they gave to themselves significant differences in positive auto-valuation between the children who perceived social high and low support. The subjects with minor social support (M = 6.39) have significantly minor averages that those of high support (M = 7.56) in the positive auto-valuation. The factor Energy was significant with regard to the perception of social support (F = 5.05; p = .008) high place (M= 8.02), down (M= 6.88)and according to the contrast between the average support (M = 7.96) and down, demonstrating that they perceive minor social support and in turn they feel with little energy and interest. The perception of social support for sex did not demonstrate significant differences. The different factors of depression turned out to be statistically significant according to the socio-economic average and low level after realizing a MANOVA [ F (4, 586) = 8.09; p = .000] . The group of low class obtained averages lower than those of the group of middle class in positive state of mind, in positive auto-valuation, in Energy and in Auto-accusation demonstrating that the children of class down them are perceived more depressed than those of middle class. Differences were not observed with regard to the depression and the gender. We conclude that the children of socioeconomic class it down there were perceived by minor social total and structural support, that is to say that they mentioned minor size of social network that contains them in comparison with the minors of middle class. It is possible to say that the children of socio-economic class it down they present major indexes of depression compared with those of middle class. The minors of economic low level said to feel with lack of energy, fewer spirit and minor auto-estimates that the level children economic average associate.