Associations Between Economic Conditions and Mental Health Among Farm Parents

Details

• Journal Article:
  Journal of Agromedicine
• Personal Author:
  Rudolphi, Josie M. ; Berg, Richard L. ; Gabor, Rachel M. ; Barnett, Kayleigh
• Description:
  Introduction: Agricultural producers in the United States experience chronic economic volatility that may place them at elevated risk for mental health challenges and disrupted family functioning. Guided by the Family Stress Model (FSM), this study examined associations between economic hardship, mental health, and parenting style among U.S. farm parents. Methods: Data were drawn from a cross-sectional survey conducted in 2021 and 2022 with 298 farm adults across multiple states. The survey included validated measures of financial strain, symptoms of depression and anxiety (PHQ-9, GAD-7), and parenting style, categorised into authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, or uninvolved. Results: Results revealed that 40.7% of farm parents met the threshold for probable depression and 30.6% for probable anxiety - rates substantially higher than national averages. Financial indicators such as difficulty paying bills, unmet material needs, financial cutbacks, and higher debt-to-asset ratios were significantly associated with poorer mental health outcomes. Parenting style was also related to both economic stress and emotional well-being: authoritative parents reported the lowest financial stress and mental health symptoms, while uninvolved parents reported the highest. Conclusions: These findings are consistent with FSM pathways, which posit that economic hardship is associated with greater psychological distress and disruptions in parenting behaviors.
• Subjects:
  Agriculture Family Mental Health Occupational Health Safety Stress, Psychological
• Keywords:
  Agricultural Workers; Agriculture; Economic Impact; Mental Health; Families; Farm Workers; Cross Sectional Studies; Behavior; Stress; Occupational Psychology; Author Keywords: Agriculture; Mental Health; Parenting; Stress
• Source:
  J Agromedicine 2026 Apr; 31(2):263-276
• ISSN:
  1059-924X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Wisconsin ; Illinois ; Chicago Region [OSHA]
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  15 pdf pages
• Volume:
  31
• Issue:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20071228
• Contact Point Address:
  Josie Rudolphi, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Illinois, 1304 W. Pennsylvania Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
• Email:
  josier@illinois.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2026
• NORA Priority Area:
  Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
• Performing Organization:
  Marshfield Clinic Research Foundation
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20080930
• End Date:
  20260929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0806d3eee835642bfecdbf89e6f060dfea6389b4e2589a060fda052a7c223164d1c8e75c9317cb15696d6ab492c4ece86792d4f713004282c012adf82a837627
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/258707/cdc_258707_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 898.41 KB ]