Positive mental health and adjustment following life-stressors among young adults

Abstract

Adjustment disorder is among the most diagnosed mental disorders worldwide. However, until recently adjustment disorder was largely neglected in mental health research. Therefore, factors associated with adjustment disorder are highly understudied. The current study aimed to reveal the role of positive mental health (PMH) as a protective factor in the development of adjustment disorder symptoms when exposed to life stressors in young adulthood. Furthermore, the study looked at whether overall PMH plays a unique role when linking life stressors and adjustment disorder symptoms, or whether its role is comparable to that of subjective well-being (SWB). The sample consisted of 299 university students (age: M (SD) = 20.53 (2.06); 35.7% female). A structural equation modelling approach was used for data analysis. The results indicated that facing more life stressors over the last 12 months was related to lower levels of PMH and SWB. However, higher levels of PMH, but not SWB, were significantly linked to lower levels of adjustment disorder symptoms. The findings of the current study suggest that in emerging adulthood when young people face many challenges, promoting positive mental health may be an important step when fighting against the development of mental problems.