Ying Zhang,1,* Jiaqi Liu,1,* Xiaozheng Wang,1 Jinhui Cheng,1 Xueying Wang,1 Canlei Zheng,1 Qing Liu,1 Wenfu Li2 

1College of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong Province, 272000, People’s Republic of China; 2College of Rehabilitation Medicine, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong Province, 272000, People’s Republic of China

*These authors contributed equally to this work

Correspondence: Qing Liu, Email 731709131@qq.com Wenfu Li, Email wenfulee@126.com

Purpose: This study examined whether depression and anxiety mediate the relationship between family functioning and academic burnout in first-year Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) students.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 319 first-year TCM students at a medical college in Shandong Province. Participants completed validated questionnaires assessing family functioning, academic burnout, depression, and anxiety. Correlational and regression analyses were conducted, and mediation effects were tested using bootstrap resampling (5,000 iterations).
Results: Poor family functioning was significantly associated with higher levels of academic burnout, depression, and anxiety. Mediation analysis showed that depression significantly mediated the relationship between family functioning and academic burnout. Anxiety demonstrated a non-significant indirect effect.
Conclusion: Deficient family functioning indirectly influences academic burnout in first-year TCM students, primarily through depression. Interventions addressing family dynamics and mental health may help reduce the risk of academic burnout in this population.

Keywords: academic burnout, anxiety, depression, family functioning, first-year traditional Chinese medicine students, mediating effect