Abstract
BackgroundCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has considerably psychologically impacted Chinese college students. Several types of online mental health services were widely implemented for college students during the outbreak. This study investigated the relationship between college students’ mental health status and psychological help-seeking behavior to test the phases-decision-making model (PDM).MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted among college students in Guangdong Province using an online platform. In total, 4,164 students were assigned to the “counseling group” or “non-counseling group” according to whether they had sought psychological help because of the COVID-19 outbreak; the groups were matched based on age, sex, and grade. Demographics, perceived mental health, and experience with seeking psychological help were recorded. Fear, depression, and trauma were assessed by the COVID-19 Fear Screening Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire, and Impact of Event Scale-6.ResultsThe fear, depression, and trauma scores were significantly higher in the counseling group than in the non-counseling group (Ps < 0.001). Fear (OR = 1.27, p < 0.001), depression (OR = 1.02, p = 0.032), trauma (OR = 1.08, p < 0.001), poor perceived mental health status (OR = 3.61, p = 0.001), and experience with seeking psychological help (OR = 7.06, p < 0.001) increased the odds of seeking psychological help.ConclusionDuring the COVID-19 epidemic, the rate of psychological help-seeking was still low, and college students in poor psychological condition sought psychological counseling more. Fear, depression, trauma, experience with seeking psychological help, and perceived mental health can effectively predict psychological help-seeking behavior. These findings emphasized the importance of closely monitoring college students’ psychological status, providing psychological intervention, and improving the probability of seeking psychological help.
Highlights
In December 2019, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID19) epidemic emerged in Wuhan, China, started to spread nationwide, and subsequently attracted worldwide attention
Based on data provided by the Guangdong Mental Health Committee of Colleges and Universities, a total of 361,969 college students completed the online survey, and 38,480 were excluded because they indiscriminately filled in information and selected the same option for each item
After for matching sex, age, and grade, we had a final sample of 4,164 participants, 2,082 of whom were in the counseling group and 2,082 of whom were in the non-counseling group
Summary
In December 2019, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID19) epidemic emerged in Wuhan, China, started to spread nationwide, and subsequently attracted worldwide attention. As of February 25, 2020, a total of 81,109 laboratory-confirmed cases had been documented globally (Holshue et al, 2020; Phan et al, 2020; Rothe et al, 2020), and 78,064 confirmed pneumonia cases and 2,715 confirmed deaths had been reported in China (Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). Massive infectious disease outbreaks usually have a considerable impact on human survival (Chih-Hung et al, 2006), and this COVID-19 epidemic has been no exception. The COVID-19 outbreak has had a profound impact on the daily life of people living in affected areas and on society as a whole. The COVID-19 epidemic has affected the daily life and physical health of ordinary Chinese but has caused many psychosocial problems. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has considerably psychologically impacted Chinese college students. This study investigated the relationship between college students’ mental health status and psychological helpseeking behavior to test the phases-decision-making model (PDM)
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