How Are Bengaluru Women Working in Corporates Dealing with Stress, Anxiety and Depression- a Qualitative Insight

Aishwarya ., MSRUAS
Sanchana Pardikar, MSRUAS

Previous studies identify common mental disorder is increasing in India and the risk factors identified were more among female gender, 40–59 age group, and urban metro dwellers. In this backdrop, the present study examines the mental health status of women working in corporate sector in Bengaluru and coping mechanism adopted by them to address the issue. The current study is a part of bigger study where tested tool ‘Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS)-21’ was administered to 101 women to understand their current mental state status. Based on the outcome of the scale, women with higher mental health concerns were identified and interviewed (using in-depth-interviews) for qualitative study which focused on their life course and understanding how they deal with it. The study found that most of the women were stressed and a few complained of anxiety and depression like symptoms. Many found it difficult to make a work-life balance. The findings highlighted the need for increased awareness and proactive measures to address the mental health challenges at workplace. Activities like meditation, yoga, following their hobbies, dancing, listing to music, spiritual practices and counselling sessions were the coping mechanisms reported by women which helped them manage stress to a greater extent.

Keywords: Inequality, Disadvantage and Discrimination, Qualitative data/methods/approaches

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