Work related depression among secondary school teachers in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia

Objective: The teaching profession is categorized as an occupation that has a high impact on emotional health such as depression. This research aims to study the prevalence of depression and the associated factors contributing to teachers' depression. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 580 secondary school teachers in Kota Bharu district. The instrument was adopted and modified from the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS 21) and Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ). The questionnaire consisted of two parts, Part I on non-job factors (socio-demographic characteristics) and Part 11 was about psychosocial factors contributing to depression. Simple and multiple linear regressions were applied. Results: The prevalence of depression was reported as 49.1% (45.0, 53.2). Most teachers experienced mild level of depression (21.0%). Decision latitude, psychological job demand and job insecurity were significantly associated with depression. Conclusion: This study indicated that job-related factors were not contributing much to depression among secondary school teachers. Hence, the non job-related factors should be emphasized to be studied for future research.