Medicalization of the uncertainty? An empirical study of the relationships between unemployment or job insecurity, professional care seeking, and the consumption of antidepressants

In addition to concerns about the treatment gap in mental health (MH) care, an increasing number of researchers are paying attention to the medicalization of daily life. Framed in a context characterized by a growth in the use of antidepressants and at the same time economic instability, the aim of this study is to unravel the relations between employment status/job insecurity, seeking professional care for MH problems, and antidepressant use. Data from the Eurobarometer 345 (2010) are used to perform gender-differentiated, multilevel logistic regression analyses. Our results show that, in accordance with the need hypothesis, part of the professional care use for emotional problems and part of the antidepressant use among the unemployed and those in insecure jobs are associated with their comparatively worse MH status. In addition, medicalization processes contribute to more frequent care and antidepressant use, irrespective of MH status, among the unemployed: increased antidepressant consumption among women in insecure jobs and more general practitioner consultations for emotional health problems among their male counterparts. In conclusion, evidence is found for both the need hypothesis as well as the medicalization hypothesis. In addition, we cannot conclude that women are more vulnerable to medicalization than men are