Associated factors of depression among young adults in Indonesia: A population-based longitudinal study

Depression is highly prevalent among young adults in Indonesia; despite this, information pertaining to the associated factors of depression remains scarce. In this study, we aimed to identify these associated factors among young adults in Indonesia by using a longitudinal study design.

We undertook secondary data analyses of the Indonesia Family Life Survey. Questionnaires related to smoking behavior, acute morbidities, perceived health, experience of natural disasters, and sociodemographic records from 2007 were used as independent variables and depression in 2014 was used as the outcome variable. The generalized estimating equation (GEE) approach was used to investigate the associated factors of depression.

The prevalence of depression among 1960 young adults was 27.86%. Based on the GEE results, perceived health was significantly negatively correlated with depression in 2014 (p < .001), whereas smoking behavior, smoking cessation, and acute morbidities in 2007 were significantly positively correlated with depression in 2014 (p < .001).

We report that the early identification of depression in this population is pivotal and relevant associated factors should be considered when developing preventive programs to avoid depression in the community.