Investigation of the associations between family functioning and depression among children and adolescents in Taiwan

Abstract

Background: Depression is one of the most common mental disorders worldwide among adolescents, and experiencing it during such a formative period can have lifelong ramifications. Previous research has shown that increased social support and family functioning are generally associated with lower levels of depression, but there are mixed findings for depression among children in cross-cultural families. More research is need in order to examine the specific associations and interactions among social support, family functioning, immigration status, and depression in the child and adolescent population. Objective: This study aimed to examine the moderating effect of parents’ immigration status on the relationship between family functioning and social support and depression. It also investigated how the family factor dimensions varied for students with an without an immigrant parent, as well as the level of agreement between the child and parent reports of family functioning. Methods: Student-self report data on social support and depression was collected, along with both student and parental-reports on family cohesion and adaptability from 5th and 7th grade students in Northern and Central Taiwan. The nationality of both parents was used to determine whether students lived in a cross-cultural family context or not. Results: The study population consisted of 1532 elementary and junior high-age students from 5 counties within Northern and Central Taiwan. Within this population, 364 students (24.17%) had immigrant parent backgrounds, and 1142 (75.83%) did not. 18% of the students could be classified as depressed. Results indicated that increased social support, and family functioning, were associated with decreased levels of depression. It was found that there was no moderation effect for parent immigration background on the relationship between family factors and depression. There was a low agreement between parents and their children on the level of family functioning, with immigrant parent households reporting higher levels of agreement than non-immigrant households. Conclusions: Some early adolescents do experience depression, and improving the family cohesion and support can protect them against its effects, regardless of if they come from an immigrant household or not. When studying adolescent depression, information from multiple informants is crucial in gaining a better understanding of the issue.