The Mediated Moderation of Conscientiousness and Active Involution on Zhongyong Practical Thinking and Depression

Ling Liu,^1,* Da Yi,^2,* Ting Li<sup>3

1</sup>Mental Health Teaching and Research Office, Guangzhou Xinhua University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; ²Law School of Criminal Justice, China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; ³Counseling and Education Center, Xiamen University, Xiamen, People’s Republic of China

*These authors contributed equally to this work

Correspondence: Da Yi, Law School of Criminal Justice, China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing, People’s Republic of China, Email [email protected]

Purpose: This study integrates traditional Chinese culture, precisely the philosophy of Zhongyong (中庸) thinking, with the prevention and treatment of depression.
Samples and Methods: It involved a study with 700 undergraduate students from a college in Guangzhou, using the Negative Zhongyong Scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and the NEO Five-Factor Inventory for assessments.
Results: The findings demonstrated that negative Zhongyong thinking predicts depression inversely. Additionally, conscientiousness indirectly and positively influences this relationship through active involution, thereby enhancing its overall effect. The analysis used the 2-mediated moderation (2meMO) model, which effectively handles error heterogeneous variances and provides a detailed assessment of the interactions between these variables. The specific findings are as follows: (1) There are correlations among negative Zhongyong thinking, depression, conscientiousness, and active involution; (2) Conscientiousness can directly and positively regulate the association between negative Zhongyong thinking and depression, and it can also indirectly regulate this relationship through active involution; (3) The higher the conscientiousness, the more actively individuals engage in active involution, thereby strengthening the negative predictive effect of negative Zhongyong thinking on depression.
Conclusion: These research findings contribute to the enrichment of theoretical research on the prevention and treatment of depressive symptoms and offer a fresh perspective on the utilization of traditional Chinese culture in depression prevention and treatment.

Keywords: Zhongyong, depression, conscientiousness, involution