Assessment of Depression and Psychological Wellbeing among Non- Working Women from Nuclear and Joint Family

Abstract

Introduction: Today, the different roles that women play in the family are emerging as a source of depressionand psychological wellbeing among non working women of joint and nuclear families. Their life can becompared to a circle where they stand at the center point and their various roles are like the needle of a compassthat rotates around their personality.

Aims and Objectives: The aim and objective of this research was toelucidate depression and psychological wellbeing among non working women of joint and nuclearfamilies.

Materials and Methods: 100 non working women from joint families and 100 non working womenfrom nuclear families were included in the study and assessed on the following: (1) Range of depressionexperienced by non working women staying in the joint and nuclear families. (2) Range of psychologicalwellbeing experienced by non working women staying in the joint and nuclear families. Data was collectedfrom the respondents using self-developed questionnaire that examined the range of depression andpsychological well-being. Z test was applied to check the difference in the range of depression andpsychological well-being experienced by the both groups of women.

Result: Findings showed thatrespondents staying in nuclear families were more depressed than the respondents staying in joint families.Surprisingly, there was no significant difference observed in the range of psychological well-being of therespondents staying in nuclear families and that of the psychological well-being of the respondents staying injoint families.

Conclusion: Nuclear families played a vital role in the respondents experiencing depressionthan that of the joint families. But both nuclear and joint families did not have any significant effect on therespondents in experiencing psychological wellbeing.