Depression among Urban Adolescents of Kolkata, West Bengal: A Cross-sectional Study

Description

Sahanowas Sk (Department of Education, Government General Degree College, Narayangarh, Affiliated to Vidyasagar University, Bhadrakali, Paschim Medinipur, West Bengal)

Depression has become common among adolescents in the present era, and it is rampant even among students all over the world, including India, particularly in West Bengal, and it was found that urban students are more depressed than rural students. In the present research endeavour, the researcher is going to address the depression levels among urban adolescent students; further, it was intended to know the relationship between gender and several levels of depression. 100 adolescent students from Kolkata were finalized purposively, and they were asked to fill out the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) (Spitzer et al., 2001). It was found that more than half of the students were reported to have a moderate level of depression; no students were found to have a severe level of depression. The chi-square test reported that gender has no role in the severity levels of depression among adolescents. Research suggested mental health-related policies and programs for all students, irrespective of gender.