Why does acculturative stress elevate depressive symptoms? A longitudinal study with emotion regulation as a mediator

Cheung, R. Y. M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0998-7991, Bhowmik, M. K. and Hue, M.-T. (2020) Why does acculturative stress elevate depressive symptoms? A longitudinal study with emotion regulation as a mediator. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 67 (5). pp. 645-652. ISSN 1939-2168 doi: 10.1037/cou0000412

Abstract/Summary

Acculturative stress has repeatedly been shown to heighten depressive symptoms. However, the explanatory process between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms has been understudied, particularly in the Chinese context. This prospective study aims to investigate emotion regulation difficulties as a mechanism between acculturative stress and depressive symptoms. A sample of 154 Mainland Chinese female university students (Mage = 21.10; SD = 2.13) were recruited in Hong Kong 3 times, with a 4-month lag between assessment points. Mediation findings converged to suggest between-person indirect effect of acculturative stress on symptoms of depression via emotion regulation difficulties, above and beyond established mediators including self-stigma and social support. Specifically, greater acculturative stress was related to a higher level of emotion regulation difficulties. In turn, greater emotion regulation difficulties were related to a higher level of depressive symptoms. The stress-generating effect of depression via emotion regulation was not simultaneously supported. These findings are informative to researchers and practitioners aiming to alleviate depressive symptoms, particularly in the Chinese context of higher education that often involves intercultural contact and stress.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/107939
Item Type	Article
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	No Reading authors. Back catalogue items
Publisher	American Psychological Association
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