A Cross-Cultural Study of Some Familial and Social Factors in Depressive Illness

SummaryA study of familial and social factors among Jewish and Protestant depressives and non-psychiatric controls revealed the following positive findings:Depressives compared to normals as a whole had: (a) a higher rate of psychiatric illness in their families; (b) lower scores on maternal overprotection; and (c) a higher rate of marriage in both ethnic groups and both sexes, except in the case of Jewish men. Religiousness was associated with depression among Jews but not among Protestants. Jewish fathers compared to Protestant fathers were: (a) less strict in the normal group; and (b) less strict, less ‘dominant’ and more ‘inadequate’ in the depressed group. Ethnic links among depressed Jews were probably weaker than those among depressed Protestants.The findings suggest that: (a) depression among Jews may be related to mental stress arising from ‘marginality’; and (b) single Jewish men may be particularly vulnerable to depression.