Blood Stasis Constitution and Depression Among Chinese Female College Students: a Longitudinal Moderation Model

Blood stasis constitution refers to a physical quality in which there is a tendency for poor blood circulation or blood flow blockage in the body, resulting in a series of external symptoms. Blood stasis constitution plays a crucial role in depression; however, little is known about how and under what conditions blood stasis constitution may influence depression. Blood stasis constitution, depression and stressful life events were measured from a two-wave longitudinal sample (with an interval of 1 year) of 523 Chinese female university students. A moderation model accounting for the developmental pathway from blood stasis constitution to depression in women was then tested. Separately using two different methods (a cross-lagged panel model and a machine learning model), blood stasis constitution significantly predicted depression in women after 1 year. Additionally, stressful life events reinforced the effect of blood stasis constitution on depression after 1 year in Chinese women. The results established a longitudinal prediction model between blood stasis constitution and depression and emphasized the moderation effect of stressful life events, which supports the diathesis-stress theory of depression. Depression can be improved by ameliorating blood stasis constitution and optimizing responses to stressful life events.