The Psychological Effects of Service in British Antarctica

This study follows the psychological profile of a group of Antarctic explorers on a remote base in British Antarctica. Each month for 1 year the 60-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) was administered to the 12-man complement and the results compared to those of a control group. Three men resigned and left, 4 months later, at the end of winter. Their scoring showed marked differences from the others, including the highest scores in the severe depression factor scale. The GHQ was accepted by the men despite the intrusive threat it offered in such a small community; there was also a seasonal variation in scoring, with higher scores in the winter, and no evidence of long-term psychological sequelae in those who stayed.

Download Full-text

Long-Term Stability of the Rational Behavior Inventory and the General Health Questionnaire

Psychological Reports ◽

10.2466/pr0.1987.60.2.637 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 60 (2) ◽

pp. 637-638

Author(s):

Robbert Sanderman ◽

Johan Ormel

Keyword(s):

General Health ◽

Community Sample ◽

General Health Questionnaire ◽

Rational Behavior ◽

Health Questionnaire ◽

Term Stability ◽

Long Term Stability

For scores of a community sample of 230 adults (120 men, 110 women) rs over 17 mo. were .40 and .78 for the General Health Questionnaire and Rational Behavior Inventory, respectively.

Download Full-text

Psychological Effects of Fasting on Patients Suffering from Diabetes Type 2

Iranian journal of diabetes and obesity ◽

10.18502/ijdo.v11i4.2874 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Narjes Hazar ◽

Somaye Gholami ◽

Shima Shafiei ◽

Mozhgan Hemmati ◽

Masoud Rahmanian

Keyword(s):

General Health ◽

General Health Questionnaire ◽

Diabetes Type 2 ◽

Diabetes Type ◽

Psychological Effects ◽

Diabetic Patients ◽

Health Questionnaire ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Before And After

Objective: We conducted this study to compare the psychological effects between diabetic patients taking fast and non-fasting counterparts to better investigate the effects of fasting on mental health of diabetes sufferers. Materials and Methods: This study was a prospective cohort conducted among diabetic patients. In this study, two types of fasting and non-fasting patients were invited to take part. During One week before and after the Ramadan, all patients were asked to complete 28-scale General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Results: In this study, 116 patients who were suffering from diabetes completed the study. They were compared with each other in format of three groups (two fasting and one non-fasting). Mean changes of total and subscales' score were negative in nearly all groups but there were no significant difference between groups. In addition, total and subscale A, B and C scores significantly increased (positive change) but subscale D score didn’t change in fasting patients during this month. Conclusion: The results of present study revealed that fasting during the whole month of Ramadan can exacerbate patients' general health in comparison with non-fasting patients. However, because we can't determine whether this finding is attributed to fasting regardless of diabetes or has been resulted from the co-existence of fasting and the disease, it is recommended to design a study to compare diabetic and healthy fasting individuals.

Download Full-text

Missing or Killed

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040/a000018 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 15 (3) ◽

pp. 185-192 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Steve Powell ◽

Willi Butollo ◽

Maria Hagl

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Health Status ◽

Suicidal Ideation ◽

Family Member ◽

General Health ◽

General Health Questionnaire ◽

Severe Depression ◽

Health Questionnaire ◽

Traumatic Grief ◽

Health Burden

Many people go missing during war and acts of terrorism. Do their families suffer an additional or different kind of mental health burden than families of people who are known to have been killed? Two groups of respondents, each comprising 56 women living in Bosnia and Herzegovina, were included in the study. These were women whose husbands were either confirmed as having been killed during the 1992–1995 war or who were at the time of the study officially still listed as missing as a result of the war. These two groups filled in questionnaires on war events, postwar stressors, and mental health status. The results showed that the group with unconfirmed losses had higher levels of traumatic grief (measured on a version of the UCLA Grief Inventory) as well as severe depression (measured on the General Health Questionnaire), even when traumatic events and stressors were controlled for. This study represents one of the first empirical confirmations that, at least in a war context, suffering the unconfirmed loss of a family member has specific negative mental health consequences compared to suffering a confirmed loss. In particular the high levels of severe depression including suicidal ideation in this group give cause for concern.

Download Full-text

A scaled version of the General Health Questionnaire

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291700021644 ◽

1979 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 139-145 ◽

Cited By ~ 2873

Author(s):

D. P. Goldberg ◽

V. F. Hillier

Keyword(s):

Primary Care ◽

Factor Structure ◽

General Health ◽

Care Setting ◽

Primary Care Setting ◽

General Health Questionnaire ◽

Somatic Symptoms ◽

Severe Depression ◽

Health Questionnaire ◽

Item Questionnaire

SYNOPSISThis study reports the factor structure of the symptoms comprising the General Health Questionnaire when it is completed in a primary care setting. A shorter, 28-item GHQ is proposed consisting of 4 subscales: somatic symptoms, anxiety and insomnia, social dysfunction and severe depression. Preliminary data concerning the validity of these scales are presented, and the performance of the whole 28-item questionnaire as a screening test is evaluated. The factor structure of the symptomatology is found to be very similar for 3 independent sets of data.

Download Full-text

Factor Structure of the 28-Item General Health Questionnaire in a Sample of Antenatal Women

The International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine ◽

10.2190/3xav-m1bc-da2b-dcmf ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 26 (3) ◽

pp. 263-269 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Yekeen A. Aderibigbe ◽

William Riley ◽

Terry Lewin ◽

Oye Gureje

Keyword(s):

Principal Component Analysis ◽

Factor Structure ◽

General Health ◽

General Health Questionnaire ◽

Severe Depression ◽

Principal Component ◽

Health Questionnaire ◽

Varimax Rotation ◽

Anxiety Depression ◽

Anxiety Subscale

Objective: The factor structure of responses to the twenty-eight-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) in a sample of 277 Nigerian antenatal women was examined. Method: Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Varimax rotation were used. Results: A four factor structure interpretable as social dysfunction, somatic-anxiety, depression-anxiety, and severe depression was obtained. Conclusion: Although the factor structure in this sample is similar to that previously reported with this instrument, the factor loadings, particularly for the anxiety subscale differed. Thus, the factor structures of the GHQ may differ depending on the cultural background of the sample.

Download Full-text

Mental Health in Medical Students a Case Control Study Using the 60 Item General Health Questionnaire

Scottish Medical Journal ◽

10.1177/003693300004500406 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 45 (4) ◽

pp. 115-116 ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

A J. Carson ◽

S. Dias ◽

A. Johnston ◽

M. A. McLoughlin ◽

M. O'Connor ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Medical Students ◽

General Health ◽

Case Control Study ◽

General Health Questionnaire ◽

Case Control ◽

Control Group ◽

First Year ◽

Health Questionnaire ◽

Control Study

This paper describes a cross-sectional case control study to measure the prevalence of psychological morbidity in first year medical students and compare it to the prevalence in in a randomly selected control group of other first year students at Edinburgh University. The study was conducted anonymously using the 60 item General Health Questionnaire. Participation rates were over 90% in both subjects and controls. A total of 17% of medical students had symptoms of psychological morbidity which may benefit from treatment and a further 29% of medical students had symptoms of psychological distress which would be expected to remit spontaneously. A similar rate was found in the control group of students. This suggests that if medical students or doctors, later in their careers, fare badly in terms of mental health then this may well be related to aspects of their lives and is not an intrinsic characteristic.

Download Full-text