Approved research

A genome-wide association study for occupational mental health

Lay summary

Occupational mental health problems are dramatically increasing during the past few years. It has been very costly to both individuals and the society. Although the past research in social science has explored the varied social and psychological factors that may influence individual's occupational mental health, the specific genetic variants and neurological foundation responsible for this have largely remained elusive. Therefore, to better understand its biological mechanism and provide with possible career development advice for millions of employees, our research aims to identify the relationship between individual's genes, brains, and mental health across different occupations. Specifically, we will firstly explore the genome-wide association with employees' mental health in different occupations, and then further explore the functioning of brains in this relationship. Moreover, we will also investigate the gene × environment interactions on the occupational mental health. We are expected to investigate these research questions in the following three years.