<p>For a high-level overview, I usually start with Wikipedia.  Wikipedia is a peer-reviewed, community-contributed, comprehensive source of high-level information.  The user community has already done the work for us of aggregating large volumes of primary and secondary source material, digesting it for the reader, keeping it up to date, and ensuring a balanced approach. so it should meet your needs as a starting point of "where the most up to date/popular/most respected views" might be.  Wikipedia also provides links to related articles, and reference source materials that you can follow up on to dig deeper.  Any similar online encyclopaedia-style wiki would be fine too (eg, Scholarpedia) if you prefer.</p>

<p>The article on "Causes of mental disorders" has a section on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Causes_of_mental_disorders#Life_experience_and_environmental_factors" rel="nofollow noreferrer">environmental factors</a>.  Some highlights:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>... environmental causes are stressors that individuals deal with in
  everyday life. These stressors range from financial issues to having
  low self-esteem.
  ...
  The lower the socioeconomic status of an individual the higher the
  risk of mental illness. Impoverished people are actually two to three
  times more likely to develop mental illness than those of a higher
  economic class.
  ... there is a strong association between poverty and substance abuse.
  ... Problems in communities or cultures, including poverty,
  unemployment or underemployment, lack of social cohesion, and
  migration, have been associated with the development of mental
  disorders.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>You may also be interested in the reverse effect - of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_economics#Mental_health_economics" rel="nofollow noreferrer">mental health on the economy</a>.  You can also use Wikipedia to research specific disorders, such as the effect of the economy on major depressive disorder (depression).  It's important to pay attention to cause and effect when doing this.  <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_depressive_disorder" rel="nofollow noreferrer">For example</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Depression is often associated with unemployment and poverty. ...
  prevalence is in groups with stronger socioeconomic factors i.e.
  homelessness.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Read this carefully, as it doesn't mean that a bad economy causes depression, only that poverty and depression co-occur - it's equally likely that depression causes poverty than the other way around.  Having said that, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4269256/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">there is strong evidence</a> that economic health does affect rates of depression:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Although reverse causation—poor mental health leading to lower
  earnings—is present, it is no longer considered the primary mechanism
  behind the association between income and health. Several longitudinal
  studies have specifically examined the relationship between depression
  and socioeconomic status and concluded that the causal direction runs
  from socioeconomic status to depression.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>I hope that this is what you were looking for to get started.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-28T12:11:47.590Z
Great answer, especially your starting paragraph. Should be the start for every wiki-style question :)
Robin Kramer-ten Have
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-05-02T17:27:19.550Z
Good starting point to such a broad question
Chris Rogers
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T19:28:05.317Z
2017-04-27T19:28:05.317Z
Arnon Weinberg
<p><em>I'm studying the below questions. I appreciate they're rather broad - the purpose of this post is to get guidance on where I might start. I'm hoping someone can provide more focused examples of related studies which will help me move forward.</em></p>

<p><strong>To what extent does a high level sense of direction weigh on day to day mental health optimisation?</strong></p>

<p>In other words...</p>

<p><strong>How is the economy relevant to mental health optimisation and does progression at such a macro level support individual psychological health progression?</strong></p>

<p>By 'high level sense of direction' I mean the level of optimism in our environment - whether that be from growing financial markets, an evolving political landscape, levels of world conflict etc. (I'm talking vision/risk appetite/optimism. Perhaps there is an academic term within the cognitive sciences for this? Behavioral Ecology?)</p>

<p>I'm looking to analyse how our global connectivity and processing of world news/events which highlight sometimes far-removed changes in our environment, directly impact our mental state.</p>

<pre><code>Ideas:
</code></pre>

<ul>
<li>Have there been any studies into the relationship between economic
performance and anxiety? Maybe the psychological outlook of Millenials who experienced a very difficult economic environment during 2007 to 2013 (credit
crisis) whilst trying to enter the workforce? Many didn't and lived
with parents longer, haven't bought houses etc..</li>
<li>Perhaps the relationship between proliferation of social media news services and psychological health?</li>
</ul>

<p><em>Please provide reading suggestions and advise if I'm not using terms recognised in the realm of cognitive science/psychology. Please add relevant tags to my question as not sure where this fits in; looking to bridge two worlds here.</em> </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T17:27:12.413Z
I don't think I saw this question come up for review, otherwise I would have voted to close it as being too broad.  You are asking how *any* macroeconomic factor might affect *any* mental health issue?  Is there any way this could be narrowed down to a single environmental factor and a single disorder, such as the effect of economic performance on levels of diagnosis of major depressive disorder?  Otherwise, the answer to this question would be the size of a book.  I'm not certain that even a single example can have a definitive answer, but worth a try...
Arnon Weinberg
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T17:33:27.467Z
If I could find a journal on the effect of economic performance on levels of diagnosis of a major depressive disorder, that would be perfect. Happy to see a single example. I appreciate an exhaustive answer is not appropriate here - I'm just looking for a starting point - I'm looking for specific examples which support the view that macroeconomic performance can have a deep impact on mental health right now..
DVCITIS
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T17:40:13.867Z
So no, I am not asking how any macroeconomic factor might affect any mental health issue.. I am asking if anyone can think of an example of a study where the impact of one (or more) macro economic factors has impacted a specific mental health issue. I'm looking to explore the questions posted above and I'm looking for guidance on where I might start within cognitive/psychology academia.
DVCITIS
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T17:42:03.663Z
OK, it's just that searching Google for "economy and mental health" brings up tons of results, so examples don't seem hard to come by...  Here is one: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21968374
Arnon Weinberg
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T17:48:26.340Z
Yes there's a lot of reading, its overwhelming - hence my question. Perhaps I should re-phrase the question to: can the cognitive sciences community on this website advise where the most up to date/popular/most respected views are on mental health and the economy?
DVCITIS
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T17:52:09.170Z
Basically just looking for guidance before I start paying for journals and investing some serious reading time..
DVCITIS
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-04-27T18:10:34.883Z
Hmmm...  Questions that invite opinions are also discouraged on this forum.  Sounds like you still need to think about what it is that you want to ask.  But I would like to help if I can, so I'll attempt an answer, and see where that gets us...
Arnon Weinberg
<io-psychology><health-psychology>
Mental Health Optimisation and the Macro Environment
DVCITIS
# Mental Health Optimisation and the Macro Environment

(Asked by: username_0 on 2017-04-25)

I'm studying the below questions. I appreciate they're rather broad - the purpose of this post is to get guidance on where I might start. I'm hoping someone can provide more focused examples of related studies which will help me move forward.
To what extent does a high level sense of direction weigh on day to day mental health optimisation?
In other words...
How is the economy relevant to mental health optimisation and does progression at such a macro level support individual psychological health progression?
By 'high level sense of direction' I mean the level of optimism in our environment - whether that be from growing financial markets, an evolving political landscape, levels of world conflict etc. (I'm talking vision/risk appetite/optimism. Perhaps there is an academic term within the cognitive sciences for this? Behavioral Ecology?)
I'm looking to analyse how our global connectivity and processing of world news/events which highlight sometimes far-removed changes in our environment, directly impact our mental state.
Ideas:


Have there been any studies into the relationship between economic
performance and anxiety? Maybe the psychological outlook of Millenials who experienced a very difficult economic environment during 2007 to 2013 (credit
crisis) whilst trying to enter the workforce? Many didn't and lived
with parents longer, haven't bought houses etc..
Perhaps the relationship between proliferation of social media news services and psychological health?

Please provide reading suggestions and advise if I'm not using terms recognised in the realm of cognitive science/psychology. Please add relevant tags to my question as not sure where this fits in; looking to bridge two worlds here.

**Tags:** io-psychology, health-psychology

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I don't think I saw this question come up for review, otherwise I would have voted to close it as being too broad.  You are asking how *any* macroeconomic factor might affect *any* mental health issue?  Is there any way this could be narrowed down to a single environmental factor and a single disorder, such as the effect of economic performance on levels of diagnosis of major depressive disorder?  Otherwise, the answer to this question would be the size of a book.  I'm not certain that even a single example can have a definitive answer, but worth a try...  
> **username_0**: If I could find a journal on the effect of economic performance on levels of diagnosis of a major depressive disorder, that would be perfect. Happy to see a single example. I appreciate an exhaustive answer is not appropriate here - I'm just looking for a starting point - I'm looking for specific examples which support the view that macroeconomic performance can have a deep impact on mental health right now..  
> **username_0**: So no, I am not asking how any macroeconomic factor might affect any mental health issue.. I am asking if anyone can think of an example of a study where the impact of one (or more) macro economic factors has impacted a specific mental health issue. I'm looking to explore the questions posted above and I'm looking for guidance on where I might start within cognitive/psychology academia.  
> **username_1**: OK, it's just that searching Google for "economy and mental health" brings up tons of results, so examples don't seem hard to come by...  Here is one: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21968374  
> **username_0**: Yes there's a lot of reading, its overwhelming - hence my question. Perhaps I should re-phrase the question to: can the cognitive sciences community on this website advise where the most up to date/popular/most respected views are on mental health and the economy?  
> **username_0**: Basically just looking for guidance before I start paying for journals and investing some serious reading time..  
> **username_1**: Hmmm...  Questions that invite opinions are also discouraged on this forum.  Sounds like you still need to think about what it is that you want to ask.  But I would like to help if I can, so I'll attempt an answer, and see where that gets us...  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2017-04-27. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

For a high-level overview, I usually start with Wikipedia. Wikipedia is a peer-reviewed, community-contributed, comprehensive source of high-level information. The user community has already done the work for us of aggregating large volumes of primary and secondary source material, digesting it for the reader, keeping it up to date, and ensuring a balanced approach. so it should meet your needs as a starting point of "where the most up to date/popular/most respected views" might be. Wikipedia also provides links to related articles, and reference source materials that you can follow up on to dig deeper. Any similar online encyclopaedia-style wiki would be fine too (eg, Scholarpedia) if you prefer.

The article on "Causes of mental disorders" has a section on [environmental factors](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Causes_of_mental_disorders#Life_experience_and_environmental_factors). Some highlights:

> ... environmental causes are stressors that individuals deal with in
> everyday life. These stressors range from financial issues to having
> low self-esteem.
> ...
> The lower the socioeconomic status of an individual the higher the
> risk of mental illness. Impoverished people are actually two to three
> times more likely to develop mental illness than those of a higher
> economic class.
> ... there is a strong association between poverty and substance abuse.
> ... Problems in communities or cultures, including poverty,
> unemployment or underemployment, lack of social cohesion, and
> migration, have been associated with the development of mental
> disorders.

You may also be interested in the reverse effect - of [mental health on the economy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_economics#Mental_health_economics). You can also use Wikipedia to research specific disorders, such as the effect of the economy on major depressive disorder (depression). It's important to pay attention to cause and effect when doing this. [For example](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_depressive_disorder):

> Depression is often associated with unemployment and poverty. ...
> prevalence is in groups with stronger socioeconomic factors i.e.
> homelessness.

Read this carefully, as it doesn't mean that a bad economy causes depression, only that poverty and depression co-occur - it's equally likely that depression causes poverty than the other way around. Having said that, [there is strong evidence](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4269256/) that economic health does affect rates of depression:

> Although reverse causation—poor mental health leading to lower
> earnings—is present, it is no longer considered the primary mechanism
> behind the association between income and health. Several longitudinal
> studies have specifically examined the relationship between depression
> and socioeconomic status and concluded that the causal direction runs
> from socioeconomic status to depression.

I hope that this is what you were looking for to get started.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Great answer, especially your starting paragraph. Should be the start for every wiki-style question :)  
> **username_3**: Good starting point to such a broad question  

---

