Dual-Factor Mental Health Profiles Among Rural School Teachers in China: Associations With Sociodemographic, Occupational, Health Behaviors, and Psychosocial Factors

This study aimed to identify heterogeneous profiles of school teachers in rural China and to examine whether these profiles differed across sociodemographic, work-related, health behavior, and psychosocial factors. Participants were 513 teachers from rural schools in Hunan Province, China ( M age = 28.84 years, SD = 9.80 years; 53.6% female). They completed self-report scales assessing negative mental health indicators (depression, anxiety, and loneliness), positive mental health indicators (life satisfaction, psychological capital, and perceived social support), and other psychosocial factors (neuroticism and perceived stress). They also reported their sociodemographic characteristics (sex, age, marital status, education level, and chronic physical illness), occupational factors (employment status, working seniority, and grade level taught), and health behaviors (exercise, smoking, alcohol consumption, and insomnia). A three-profile solution was identified as the optimal model based on latent profile analysis: complete mental health group (26.9%), vulnerable group (56.5%), and troubled group (16.6%). Multinomial logistic regression indicated that the profiles differed in socioeconomic status, exercise, insomnia, neuroticism, and perceived stress. These findings inform the development of targeted prevention strategies and intervention policies for rural school teachers’ mental health profiles.