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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1433949

Where You Live, What You Do: Depression Differences Among Diverse Chinese Nongmin Through Cognitive Openness

Provisionally accepted
Li He Li He 1Jiangyin Wang Jiangyin Wang 1Yang Yang Yang Yang 2Zhilu Tian Zhilu Tian 1Liu Jiang Liu Jiang 3*
  • 1 Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, Hubei Province, China
  • 2 School of Politics and International Relations, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei Province, China
  • 3 Wuhan University, Wuhan, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Objective: This study aims to investigate the depression levels among Workers with Agricultural Hukou (WAH) in China, considering their varied living environments, types of work, and social discrimination experiences. It specifically addresses the research question: Is there a significant discrepancy in depression levels among different subgroups within WAH? Methods: The study utilizes data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) for the years 2018 and 2020. To estimate the depression levels and their variances across different WAH subgroups, we employed three analytical methods: Ordinary Least Squares, Propensity Score Matching, and Two-Stage Least Squares.Results: Our findings indicate that all WAH subgroups experience higher levels of depression compared to Workers with Non-Agricultural Hukou (WNAH). Among the WAH subgroups, the depression levels, in ascending order, are observed in Rural-to-Urban Migrant Workers (RUMW), Rural Non-Agricultural Workers (RNAW), Subsistence Farmers, and Agricultural Laborers. Notably, these differences in depression levels may be influenced by the mechanism of cognitive openness.The study concludes that there are significant disparities in depression levels among WAH subgroups. Understanding these differences is crucial for targeted mental health interventions and for addressing the broader implications of social discrimination and work-related stress among agricultural workers in China.

    Keywords: CFPS, Subsistence farmers, Agricultural laborers, Rural Non-Agricultural Workers, Rural-to-urban migrant workers, Depression

    Received: 16 May 2024; Accepted: 13 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 He, Wang, Yang, Tian and Jiang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Liu Jiang, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.