Abstract
Background: Studies have shown that low childhood socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with a high prevalence of depressive symptoms. Childhood trauma, as a potential consequence of low SES, may play an important part, but the mediation effect of childhood trauma remains to be elucidated.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1,807 university students. The MacArthur Scale of Subjective Social Economic Status—Youth Version, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, and Beck Depression Inventory were used to measure childhood SES, childhood trauma, and current depressive symptoms, respectively. A structural equation model (SEM) was employed to demonstrate the mediating role of childhood trauma on the association between childhood SES and depressive symptoms.Results: The SEM demonstrated that childhood SES had significant indirect effects upon depressive symptoms via childhood trauma. Childhood trauma accounted for 89.3% of the total effect, indicating a profound mediation effect.Conclusions: The effect of childhood SES on the depressive symptoms of young adults was mediated by childhood trauma, which emphasizes the importance of early prevention and intervention of child neglect/abuse.
Highlights
Studies have demonstrated that socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with the risk of major depressive disorders
We found that 27.1% of students (n = 490) reported that they had been raised in a low-SES family
Low childhood SES and childhood trauma appeared to be common among our study cohort
Summary
Studies have demonstrated that socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with the risk of major depressive disorders. The risk of depression for individuals living in rural areas and with low SES has been shown to be 1.5- and 2.3-fold higher, respectively, than that for individuals living in urban areas (OR 1.5, 95% CI 1.4–1.7; OR 2.3, 95% CI 2.1–2.4) [3]. Theories based on social causation and health selection have been proposed to explain the relationship between SES and mental disorders [4]. Social causation theory suggests that higher levels of stress and adversity caused by low SES account for the SES, Depression and Childhood Trauma observed elevation in the risk of psychological disorders. Studies have shown that low childhood socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with a high prevalence of depressive symptoms. As a potential consequence of low SES, may play an important part, but the mediation effect of childhood trauma remains to be elucidated
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