Prevalence of Depression in Center-based Early Childhood Educators by Sociodemographic Characteristics

Abstract Early childhood educators are at high risk of depression and lack access to evidence-based care, which may result in increased multi-level outcomes from child expulsion, impaired educator well-being, workplace turnover, and health care costs. Identifying educators at the highest risk of depression is crucial for targeted intervention and policy, yet research with nationally representative populations is limited. Addressing this gap, we estimated the prevalence of depression among center-based educators with the 2019 National Survey of Early Care and Education Workforce Survey ( n = 4,709). Depression was measured with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression-7. We also examined depression prevalence by social characteristics, including gender, parenting role, income, age, marital status, education, and race/ethnicity. We found that 9.6% of educators had depression, compared to 7-8.5% of adults nationwide. Educators who were younger or non-Hispanic had the highest depression risk; marginal significance emerged for those with three or more children under five years old. More research is needed to understand depression after the COVID-19 pandemic, and workplace wellness programs and policy should consider targeting depression interventions towards educators at the highest risk.