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Unraveling the Nexus between Overeducation and Depressive Symptoms in China: The Roles of Perceived Fairness of Earnings and Job Autonomy

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Abstract

The global expansion of educational systems has led to a growing prevalence of overeducation. Despite the well-documented overeducation-depression nexus in the developed world, scholars have paid much less attention to this relationship in developing countries. This study utilized data from the China Labor-Force Dynamis Survey (CLDS) 2016 and China’s 1% Population Sample Survey 2015 to explore the mechanisms linking overeducation to depressive symptoms and identify factors buffering the strength of this association. Employing causal inference methods, including instrumental variable regression and propensity score matching, we find a positive impact of overeducation on depressive symptoms. Mediation analysis shows that low personal income and perceived fairness of earnings act as mediators, aligning with perspectives of wage penalty and distributive justice within the context of overeducation. Moreover, interaction effects suggest a stronger association between overeducation and depressive symptoms among individuals with less job autonomy, partially due to their lower likelihood of perceiving their earnings as fair. This study integrates status inconsistency theory and distributive justice theory, offering valuable insights for future research and policy formulation to address mental health challenges linked to educational mismatch in the workforce.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Major Research Project of Philosophy and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China “Population Opportunities, Challenges, and Policy Research in the Construction of Chinese-Style Modernization” (grant no.: 23JZD028) and the Youth Development Program (YDP) at CASS “Research on High-Quality Population Development Issues in the Process of the Chinese Path to Modernization” (grant no.: 2024QQJH160).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Social Development, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China

    Xiaohang Zhao & Yang Feng

  2. Department of Sociology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China

    Lei Jin

  3. The Academy of China Open Economy Studies, University of International Business and Economics, Beijing, China

    Skylar Biyang Sun

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  1. Xiaohang Zhao
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  2. Yang Feng
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  3. Lei Jin
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Contributions

All authors contributed to formulating the research question and designing the study. X. Zhao and F. Yang analyzed the data. X. Zhao and F. Yang wrote the initial draft of the manuscript, which was commented on and edited by L. Jin and S.B. Sun. X. Zhao and F. Yang produced the tables and figures. X. Zhao and F. Yang revised the paper. X. Zhao and F. Yang contributed to this work equally.

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Correspondence to Xiaohang Zhao or Yang Feng.

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Zhao, X., Feng, Y., Jin, L. et al. Unraveling the Nexus between Overeducation and Depressive Symptoms in China: The Roles of Perceived Fairness of Earnings and Job Autonomy. Applied Research Quality Life (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-024-10311-2

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