A study on the relationship between learning burnout and quality of life among primary and secondary school students during an infectious disease epidemic: the mediating roles of depression and family health

To investigate the mediating roles of depressed mood and family health in the relationship between learning burnout and quality of life (QOL) among primary and secondary school students during public health emergencies. The study was conducted in Xi’an City, China, from 15 to 30 January 2022, targeting students from urban and rural areas within the epidemic prevention and control zone. A total of 20,152 questionnaires were initially collected, with 809 invalid responses excluded, resulting in a final sample of 19,343 valid questionnaires (response rate of 95.99%) from primary and secondary school students. Regression analysis and mediation effect analysis were employed to assess the relationships among learning burnout, depression, family health, and QOL. Learning burnout was negatively associated with QOL, and the association was potentially mediated through depression and family health. Depression was inversely related to QOL, with family health potentially acting as a mediator in this relationship, exhibiting a healthy family was correlated with higher QOL (depression→family health: -0.87, family health→QOL: 0.66), which was inversely related to the negative effects of depression (depression→QOL: -0.11). Depression and family health were identified as potential mediators in the association between learning burnout and QOL among these students, highlighting the crucial importance of alleviating depression and enhancing family health in efforts to improve their overall QOL.