Relationship between parents’ mental disorders and socioeconomic status and offspring’s psychopathology: A cross-sectional study

Mental disorders (MD) are one of the main causes of the disease burden worldwide. Associations between socioeconomic status (SES) and presence of MD in parents have been related with increased odds of MD in offspring. However, there is a lack of population-based research in this field. The aim of the present study was to examine together the relationship between the presence of MD in children, and the SES and presence of MD in their parents, in a whole of population data. A gender approach was undertaken aiming to discern how these variables influence children’s mental health when related with the father and the mother. Using administrative individual data from the National Health System, a retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted. The entire children population aged 6 to 15 resident in Catalonia in 2017 was examined. A logistic regression model was performed. Low SES was associated with increased odds of children’s MD. Offspring of a parent with MD were at more risk of presenting MD than offspring of parents without these problems. Although these associations were consistent for both boys and girls when looking at the father’s or mother’s SES and MDs, the mother’s SES and MDs showed a higher association with the offspring’s MDs than the father’s. Lowest associations, found for boys when looking at the father’s SES and MDs, were: OR of 1.21, 95%CI 1.16 to 1.27 for lowest SES, and OR of 1.66, 95%CI 1.61 to 1.70 for parental MDs. Children’s familiar environment, which includes SES and mental health of parents, plays an important role in their mental health. Socially constructed gender roles interfere with SES and parent’s MD. These findings support the relevance of examining MD and its risk factors within a gender approach.