Differences in protective resources and risks for depressive symptoms among recent widows in the United States and India

Widowhood is among the most consequential stressful events for mental health. Although certain resources have been identified as protective of mental health following widowhood, these findings are based on US samples. This study uses novel harmonized data to evaluate differences in depressive symptoms and related factors among those recently widowed (ie, within the last 2 years) in the United States (Health and Retirement Study) and India (Longitudinal Aging Study in India). We find US widows have greater elevation in depressive symptoms (-0.36 SD) than widows in India (-0.15) on average. We identify 3 protective resources for widows that are dependent on country context: having close friends vs no friends (-0.58 vs -0.13) and living with others vs alone (-0.79 vs -0.23) are both larger for widows in the United States. Self-rated health that is good, fair, or poor is related to higher depressive symptoms for widows in the United States vs India (between 0.55 and 1.12). Findings suggest protective resources among recently widowed individuals designed to protect mental health following this stressful event will require consideration of country context. In particular, social engagement-based interventions may offer more significant benefits to widows in the United States.