Dagher and Green: Substance abuse and depression in young adulthood may have long-term socioeconomic effects
A recent study by MPRC Faculty Associates Rada Dagher and Kerry Green finds that young adults with co-occurring depression and substance abuse are more likely to be unemployed and have lower incomes in later in life. Dagher and Green looked at data from a study that followed a group of African Americans from the same disadvantaged Chicago neighborhood from first grade through midlife. Seven percent of those in the study experienced both substance abuse and depression. Those individuals also had lower incomes later in life.
Rather than treating each disorder separately, clinical interventions should integrate the treatment of both substance abuse and depression. This approach to treatment may be helpful to reduce the long-term socioeconomic effects of these disorders. "In the United States, co-occurring substance use and mental health disorders impact around nine million people each year, yet these disorders are still generally treated separately," said Dr. Dagher, the study's lead author. "How we treat these dual disorders can have a significant impact on people's ability to earn a livelihood."