Neuroticism and Depression among First-Year College Students Using a Moderated Mediation Model of Perceived Social Support and Perceived Stress

Background Depression can have various negative impacts on a college student's academic career. While previous studies have indicated a link between neuroticism, perceived stress, and depression, the role of perceived social support in moderating this relationship remains unclear. This study investigated the moderating effect of perceived social support in this context. Methods: 568 first-year student participants were involved in the study, with 74.6% being female and having a mean age of 18.63 (SD = 0.72). Data on depression (PHQ-9), perceived stress (PSS-10), neuroticism (CBF-PI-B), and perceived social support (MSPSS-12) were collected and analyzed. The moderating role of the subscales of perceived social support was examined, utilizing mediation and moderation analyses with the 5000 bootstrapping methods. Results: The findings revealed that perceived social support significantly moderated the association between neuroticism and depression (B = -0.078 (95%CI: -0.173, 0.029)). Notably, support from family emerged as particularly influential in moderating this relationship (B = -0.104 (95%CI: -0.175, -0.023)). Conclusion: The research underscores the significant role of perceived social support, especially from family, in alleviating the impact of neuroticism on depression. Students who perceive strong family support tend to experience lower levels of depression. The study discusses the implications of these findings and suggests potential areas for future research.