University Students' Perceived Peer Support and Experienced Depressive Symptoms during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediating Role of Emotional Well-Being.

Yao Sun,Kevin Kien Hoa Chung,Shiang-Yi Lin

doi:10.3390/ijerph17249308

Abstract

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has adversely affected individuals’ mental health. Social isolation as a result of social distancing during the pandemic potentially affects the associations among perceived available peer support, emotional well-being, and depression in university students. The present study examined the associations among university students’ perceived available peer support, emotional well-being (as indicated negatively by loneliness and negative affects and positively by positive affects and hope), and depressive symptoms. During the third wave of the COVID-19 outbreak in July, 2020, 255 students at a public university in Hong Kong participated in an online-based survey that assessed their perceived available peer support, emotional well-being, and depressive symptoms. Results showed that perceived available peer support negatively contributed to depressive symptoms; both negative and positive indicators of emotional well-being mediated the association between perceived available peer support and depressive symptoms. Our results also suggested that university students showed signs of elevated depressive symptoms during the pandemic. Thus, our study advanced the theoretical understanding of university students’ mental health in the time of a global pandemic. Our study also highlighted the practical needs for preventive efforts and accessible care to support the psychological and emotional needs of young people during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Highlights

Since early 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a global public health crisis.The disease, first documented in Wuhan, China, quickly spread worldwide and was soon declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization [1]
One recent study revealed that compared to prepandemic levels, university students nominated fewer fellow students as social interaction partners and perceived less emotional support from their peers during the COVID-19 pandemic; among the same group of students, those who perceived a lower level of emotional support tended to be more depressed [10]. Guided by both theories of belongingness and social support, this study examined two negative and two positive indicators of emotional well-being as potential mediators underlying the relationship between perceived available peer support and depressive symptoms
The purpose of the study was introduced on the first page of the questionnaire, which read “The purpose of the study is to understand university students’ mental health and psychological well-being during the COVID-19, and eventually to provide support to university students’ psychological and emotion needs”

Summary

Introduction

Since early 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a global public health crisis. The disease, first documented in Wuhan, China, quickly spread worldwide and was soon declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization [1]. Since the onset of pandemic, people around the globe have been experiencing a variety of psychological problems, such as depression and anxiety [4,5,6,7]. These problems emerged among students, given that the

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