Age group differences in psychological distress: The role of psychosocial risk factors that vary with age

Abstract

Background. There is continuing controversy about how age affects depression and anxiety, with a lack of consistent results across studies. Two reasons for this inconsistency are age bias in measures and different patterns of exposure to risk factors across age groups in various studies. Method. Data on anxiety and depression symptoms were collected in a community survey of 7485 persons aged 20-24, 40-44 or 60-64 years. These measures were investigated for factorial invariance across age groups. Data were also collected on a wide range of potential risk factors, including social, physical health and personal factors, with the aim of determining whether these factors might partly or wholly ac..