ABSTRACT
The data collected in the Eastern Baltimore Mental Health Survey provide a unique opportunity to determine for a probability sample of the non-institutional population the prevalence rates of mental disorders not only for persons living in different types of family, but also for persons living in non-family households. The objectives of this study were: to demonstrate the variations in prevalence rates of mental disorders by type of household; to elucidate the significance of data on the distribution of mental disorders by household characteristics for epidemiological research. The weighted data were used to determine the distribution of the population 18 years and over by marital status and household variables and the corresponding prevalence rates. To conclude, changes in household composition of the population provide many opportunities for research to fill in gaps in the people knowledge about the effect of these changes on the incidence, prevalence, course and outcome of mental disorders.
