Family economic hardship and Chinese adolescents' sleep quality: A moderated mediation model involving perceived economic discrimination and coping strategy

Abstract

The association between family economic hardship and adolescent adjustment outcomes, including sleep quality, is well-established. Few studies, however, have examined the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying the relation between family economic hardship and adolescents' sleep quality. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of family economic hardship on Chinese adolescents' sleep quality, as well as the role of perceived economic discrimination as a mediator and the role of coping strategy as a moderator. Survey data from a cross-sectional sample of 997 Chinese adolescents (45% male, mean age = 15.04 years) were analyzed using path analysis in Mplus 7.0. The results of this study indicated that family economic hardship was significantly associated with adolescents' sleep quality. This association was mediated by adolescents' perceived economic discrimination. In addition, adolescents' coping strategy significantly moderated the path from perceived economic discrimination to sleep quality, with the “shift” coping strategy as a protective factor. The present study contributes to our understanding of key mechanisms underlying the association between family economic hardship and adolescent sleep quality and highlights the importance of improving sleep quality for adolescents exposed to economic hardship.