Feeling Depressed? Maybe It’s Because of Your Job!

By Sun

A personal care provider is twice as likely to develop depression than a software programmer, according to the latest National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) report released last week by the Office of Applied Studies.

The study focused on the relationship between depression and occupation among adults (age 18 or older) who work full-time. Data from 2002 to 2004 was used in the study, which found that overall nearly 7% of all full-time workers experienced major depressive episode (MDE) in 2006. The report ranked Personal Care and Service as the occupational category with the highest rate of depression, at nearly 11%, followed by Food Preparation and Service at a little over 10%. The study also found that females are in general more likely to feel depressed than their male counterparts across all job categories.

Which job has the lowest depression rate? The answer is in the following chart.

depression.png

Feeling depressed? Maybe it’s time to consider a career change :)

*Photo from lifedynamix.com

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6 Responses to “Feeling Depressed? Maybe It’s Because of Your Job!”

  1. Joel |  Oct 16, 2007 at 1:34 pm

    Depression is caused primarily by genetics, physiological factors, and life experiences. Occupation is rarely if ever a factor. If you’re depressed, please seek help to address the root causes. Changing jobs could likely make the situation worse.

  2. Patrick |  Oct 16, 2007 at 2:52 pm

    Hmmm…. I don’t see “desk monkey” or “cubicle farmer” listed. I guess people in my line of work don’t get depressed! Oooh, unless Office and Administrative Support counts, then it looks like I’m in trouble. :(

  3. Money Blue Book |  Oct 16, 2007 at 9:15 pm

    Ah yes, luckily my job is somewhere in the middle. Not enough depression to make me sad, but just enough to keep me on my toes. :)
    -Raymond

  4. Andrew |  Oct 18, 2007 at 10:58 pm

    I wish they had another chart with “titles” to see what people did and their depresssion rates.

  5. PinoyTech |  Oct 22, 2007 at 4:30 am

    It’s a good thing I am in management. Just above average :(

  6. Living Off Dividends |  Jan 30, 2008 at 1:34 pm

    I was amongst the 6.5% of programmers who was depressed with his job.

    So I QUIT!!!!

    I gave my GMAT and am going to B-school. I’m much happier now. And luckily, my passive income allows me to take some time off :D