Persistence and Remission of Depressive Symptoms and Psycho-social Correlates in Chinese Early Adolescents

Background: This study aimed to investigate a one-year course of persistent/remitted depressive symptoms and associated demographic and psychosocial factors that predict persistent/remitted depressive symptoms in Chinese high school students.

Methods: One thousand five hundred forty-four Grade 7 students provided data for the first wave. Of the initially recruited students, 483 who were classified as depressed (CESD score ≥ 16) at baseline were then tracked and invited to fill in the questionnaire for a second time (Grade 8) after 1 year. Finally, 435 of them were successfully matched.

Results: Two hundred two (46.4%) of the subset categorized as depressed in the first survey (N = 435) remained with depressive symptoms, while 233 (53.6%) recovered from depression 1 year later. Having siblings, a lower level of positive youth development, non-intact family status, and poor family functioning at baseline significantly predicted a higher likelihood of persistent depression, while those with fathers having higher educational qualifications (bachelor's degree or higher) at baseline showed a significantly higher probability of remitting from depression.

Conclusions: The findings indicated that the prevalence of persistent depressive symptoms was generally high, and promoting aspects of positive youth development and family functioning for adolescents could be promising in preventing or reducing these symptoms.