Associations Between Psychological Stress and the Risk of First Onset of Major Depression Disorder: Results from a Longitudinal Study in 6,985 Chinese First-Year Students

Abstract

Background: Youth and young adults have a high prevalence of major depressive disorder (MDD). Limited longitudinal research has explored the relationship between different dimensions of psychological stress and MDD. This study aimed to estimate the effect of psychological stress on the risk of first onset MDD in a sample of Chinese freshmen. Methods: Using a longitudinal design, 8079 Chinese first-year students were recruited at baseline, and 6985 were followed up one year later. The Psychological Stress Scale for College Students was utilized to evaluate the levels of psychological stress. MDD was evaluated using the Chinese version of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI-3.0). Logistic regression modeling was utilized to estimate the associations between dimensions of psychological stress and the risk of MDD. Results: Two dimensions of psychological stress, namely learning stress (OR=1.05, 95% CI:1.01–1.09, P=0.017) and economic stress (OR=1.11, 95% CI:1.04–1.19, P=0.001), were significantly associated with the risk of MDD. Other dimensions of psychological stress (specify family stress, interpersonal stress, intimate relationship stress, employment stress and appearance stress) were not associated with MDD. Conclusion: Psychological stress, especially learning and economic stresses, could increase the risk of MDD in university students. These factors should be incorporated into mental health prevention and intervention programs at universities to reduce the risks of MDD.