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BACKGROUND: Understanding the interplay between parental and adolescent depression and anxiety is crucial for disrupting the intergenerational cycle of mental health challenges, particularly in resource-limited settings. Mental health literacy (MHL) may serve as a key mechanism in this process. METHODS: A cross-sectional study collected data from 4632 adolescents and 4412 parents through online questionnaires between September 2023 and March 2024 in Guizhou Province, China. The Mental Health Literacy Scale was used to measure MHL for both parents and adolescents. Parental mental health was assessed using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale and The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Adolescents' anxiety was measured using the Screen for Child Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders, and their depression was assessed with The Children's Depression Inventory. RESULTS: The study found that adolescents' depression and anxiety symptoms were negatively associated with both their own and their parents' MHL. The parental depression was significantly associated with adolescents' depression and anxiety, while parental anxiety was associated with both adolescents' depression and anxiety. In the mediation model analysis, both parents' and adolescents' MHL were found to mediate the associations between parental depression and adolescents' depression and anxiety. Furthermore, parents' MHL also mediated the associations between parental anxiety and adolescents' depression and anxiety. CONCLUSIONS: These findings reveal that MHL mediates the relationship between parental and offspring mental health and may play a protective role. It particularly emphasizes the awareness of mental illness recognition, seeking information, the availability of professional help, and stigmatizing attitudes towards mental disorders as key areas for intervention.
Hu et al. (Mon,) studied this question.