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Seasonal Variations in Mood and Behaviour Associated with Gender, Annual Income and Education: The Hordaland Health Study

  • Psychiatric Diseases
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Abstract

Objective: To explore the relationship between demographic factors and seasonal changes in mood and behaviour. Method: A health survey was conducted among 40–45 year old inhabitants in Hordaland County, Norway. The Global Seasonality Score, investigating seasonal symptoms, was given to 4299 men and 9983 women. Response rates among those receiving the questionnaire were 79.8% for men (n=3432) and 81.2% for women (n=8223). Results: High seasonality was reported by 18.4% of men and 22.2% of women. Female gender, low educational level, high level of affective symptomatology and low household income correlated with high seasonality. Among men, being single was also a determinant factor for high seasonality. Reported seasonality also depended on which month the questionnaire was filled in. Conclusions: In this study, high seasonality was most prevalent among females, being single, having a low annual income and a low education level. The latter two findings are different from expectations which could be drawn from previous studies suggesting an opposite association.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care, University of Bergen, Norway

    Nicolas M. F. Øyane & Bjørn Bjorvatn

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Bergen, Norway

    Fred Holsten

  3. Department of Biomedicine, University of Bergen, Norway

    Reidun Ursin

  4. Department of Locus on Neuroscience, University of Bergen, Norway

    Fred Holsten, Reidun Ursin & Bjørn Bjorvatn

  5. Norwegian Competence Center for Sleep Research, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway

    Fred Holsten, Reidun Ursin & Bjørn Bjorvatn

Authors
  1. Nicolas M. F. Øyane
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  2. Fred Holsten
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  3. Reidun Ursin
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  4. Bjørn Bjorvatn
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Correspondence to Nicolas M. F. Øyane.

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Øyane, N.M.F., Holsten, F., Ursin, R. et al. Seasonal Variations in Mood and Behaviour Associated with Gender, Annual Income and Education: The Hordaland Health Study. Eur J Epidemiol 20, 929–937 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-005-2952-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-005-2952-0

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