| Abstrakt: |
The psychological well‐being of rural women has been a neglected research topic. This paper begins to fill that gap by reporting a study of the emotional well‐being of 75 women in a highly rural Pennsylvania county and a comparable urban group (N = 78) from Philadelphia. Results indicated few differences between the groups in any of the indicators of well‐being (stress, tension, strain, exhaustion, and life satisfaction); both groups reported relatively low stress and rather high life satisfaction. For both groups, stress related to family and friendship matters was most significant, followed by job‐related stress. Lifestyle factors (SES level, young children at home) were important predictors of stress for rural but not urban women, while poor health predicted stress for both groups. Findings are discussed in terms of the social, cultural, and economic characteristics of rural and urban life. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER] |
