Chronic medical problems, coping resources, and depression: a longitudinal study of rural Tennesseans.

This analysis examined chronic medical problems as a risk factor for depressive symptomatology using longitudinal survey data from a sample of rural Tennesseans. Two waves of data (1977 and 1983) were collected on 532 rural Middle-Tennessee residents. An initial investigation found chronic medical problems a powerful predictor of depression. Furthermore, internal and external resources (personal resources and social support) operated as moderating factors between the stress of medical problems and psychiatric impairment. Panel regression analyses indicated that Time 1 depression level as well as medical problems at Time 2 (t2) were significant predictors of depression at t2 in rural areas of the mid-South. Finally, the buffering effects of both social support and personal resources were explored.