Family environment and subjective wellbeing in adolescents: the mediating roles of anxiety and depressive symptoms

Background Adolescent depression and anxiety are major global health threats. As a core developmental microsystem, family environment strongly influences emotional states and subjective wellbeing (SWB). Few studies have explored whether affective symptoms mediate this association. Using data from treatment-seeking adolescents, we tested these mediating effects and gender differences. Methods In total, 1,284 adolescents recruited from a general hospital completed self-report questionnaires measuring family-environment indicators, including sibling status, parental marital quality (PMQ), family monthly income (FMI), family psychiatric history (FPH). Depressive and anxiety symptoms were assessed using PHQ-9 and GAD-7, while the total score of Adolescent Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale (ASLSS-T) and Family Life Satisfaction Subscale (ASLSS-FAM) served as SWB indicators. Results Females reported higher PHQ-9/GAD-7 but lower ASLSS-T/FAM. PMQ correlated with lower PHQ-9/GAD-7 and higher ASLSS-T/FAM, whereas FPH correlated with more severe PHQ-9/GAD-7 and lower ASLSS-T/FAM. In full-sample mediation models, GAD-7 partially mediated PMQ–SWB and FPH–SWB associations; PHQ-9 fully mediated sibling status–ASLSS-T link and partially mediated pathways for PMQ and FPH. Descriptively among males, GAD-7 fully mediated the FPH–ASLSS-T association and both GAD-7 and PHQ-9 mediated FPH-related pathways. In females, GAD-7 showed no significant mediation, while only PHQ-9 partially mediated PMQ and FPH-ASLSS-T/FAM associations. Formal moderated-mediation analyses (PROCESS Model 59) revealed significant gender heterogeneity exclusively in FMI-to-SWB pathways via anxiety symptoms; most mediating pathways showed no significant gender differences. Conclusion This study reveals that family environment is associated with SWB among treatment-seeking adolescents through the mediating effects of depressive and anxiety symptoms. These findings point to the possible utility of gender-differentiated, symptom-targeted family interventions in enhancing mental-health outcomes for at-risk treatment-seeking adolescents.