Politics negatively impacts women's mental health in Georgia: Depression, anxiety, and perceived stress from 2023 to 2024

Background: Political stress has been negatively associated with the psychological well-being of Americans in recent years, however effects may be heightened among women in the Southeastern United States (US) in response to restrictions on reproductive rights. Here, we explored the impact of political stress on generalized anxiety symptoms depressive symptoms, and global perceived stress in women living in the Southeastern US from 2023 to 2024. Methods: Participants were enrolled in the cross-sectional Policies and Social Stress (PASS) Study (N = 148). Political stress, global perceived stress, generalized anxiety symptoms, and depressive symptoms were assessed using validated, self-reported questionnaires. Adjusted linear regression models were used to examine associations between political stress and global perceived stress, generalized anxiety, and depression. We examined effect modification and interaction by political orientation, race, education, abortion view, and perception of the 2024 election. Results: Increasing political stress was significantly associated with elevated levels of generalized anxiety symptoms (β = 0.07, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.03, 0.11), depressive symptoms (β = 0.09, 95% CI = 0.00, 0.17), and global perceived stress (β = 0.09, 95% CI = 0.05, 0.13). These associations were greatest in magnitude among those who held at least a college degree, believed abortion should be legal in most or all cases, self-identified as politically liberal or white, and reported that the 2024 election was a significant source of stress. Conclusions: The current political climate may be negatively impacting women's mental health, especially for certain subgroups. It may be important for researchers to continue investigating the impact of the sociopolitical climate on mental health given well-documented national trends indicative of increased political polarization.