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. 2018 Jul 4;18(1):217.
doi: 10.1186/s12888-018-1787-7.

Association of recent gay-related stressful events with depressive symptoms in Chinese men who have sex with men

Yunyong Liu  1 , Chao Jiang  2 , Siyao Li  3 , Yuan Gu  4 , Yan Zhou  5 , Xiaoxia An  6 , Li Zhao  7 , Guowei Pan  8
Affiliations

Association of recent gay-related stressful events with depressive symptoms in Chinese men who have sex with men

Yunyong Liu et al. BMC Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Background: To assess the association of different gay-related stressful events (GRSEs) with depressive symptoms in Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM).

Method: A total of 807 MSM were recruited using respondent-driven sampling from four cities in northeastern China. GRSEs were measured using the Gay Related Stressful Life Events Scale, and depressive symptoms were assessed using the Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS).

Results: A total of 26.0% of study participants experienced GRSEs in the past three months, and the average SDS score was lower than the previously reported national average for China. The study participants had significantly elevated risks of depression (SDS score ≥ 53) due to recent troubles with a boss (OR = 4.92, 95% CI = 1.87-12.97) or a workmate (OR = 3.68, 95% CI = 1.52-8.88), loss of a close friend (OR = 2.41, 95% CI = 1.39-4.18), argument with a close friend (OR = 2.07, 95% CI = 1.33-3.22), and being physically assaulted (OR = 2.08, 95% CI = 0.98-4.43). Arguments with family members or classmates had no significant effect on depression. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the number of GRSEs, a lower level of education, more advanced age, and HIV infection significantly increased the risk of depression.

Conclusions: There are large differences in the associations of different types of GRSEs with depressive symptoms. Reducing the stigmatization and discrimination toward MSM in all social environments and improving the capability of MSM to cope with different types of GRSEs may improve their emotional wellbeing.

Keywords: Depressive symptoms; Gay related stressful event; Men who have sex with men; Social support.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki on ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects. The ethics committee of Liaoning Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention (LNCDCP) approved the study. All subjects gave written informed consent after the study objectives were explained, and all subjects were free to withdraw at any time without giving any reason.

Consent for publication

Not applicable in this section.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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