The Prevalence of Depressive Symptoms and Its Determinants Among Adults in Mainland China: Results from a National Household Survey

Background: Depression have become a widespread health concern in Chinese society.

Methods: We analyzed the factors influencing the risk of depression among residents aged 16 and over using data from the 2016 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), in which depression was measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D20) scale. A total of 26,464 individuals were sampled in a weighted manner to represent the entire country. Univariate and multivariate analysis were used to explore the risk factors for depression and the odds of depression in people with different characteristics.

Results: A total of 76.6% of adult residents were mentally healthy. Females had higher rates of depression than males (OR=1.515). There was an "inverted U-shaped" distribution between age and risk of depression. Higher levels of education and better physiological health were associated with a lower risk of depression. Self-evaluated income and social status were not linearly related to the risk of depression but rather had a "U-shaped" distribution. For social capital, better social relationships and a higher level of social trust were associated with a lower risk of depression. Nonsmokers had a lower risk of depression than smokers (OR=0.818).

Limitations: All items were self-reported and some results depend on single item responses. This is a cross-sectional survey so that causative interpretations cannot be drawn.

Conclusion: These findings suggest potential public health measures whose efficacy needs to be tested and confirmed.