Emotional intelligence as predictor of mental, social, and physical health in university students

This study examined the association between emotional intelligence (EI), anxiety, depression, and mental, social, and physical health in university students. The sample was made up of 184 university students (38 men and 146 women). El was evaluated by the Trait Meta-Mood Scale (Salovey, Mayer, Goldman, Turvey, and Palfai, 1995), which evaluates the three dimensions (Attention, Clarity, and Mood Repair). Anxiety was evaluated with the Trait Anxiety Questionnaire (Spielberger, Gorsuch, Lushene, Vagg, and Jacobs, 1983) and depression with the Beck Depression Inventory (Beck, Rush, Shaw, and Emery, 1979). Mental, social, and physical health were evaluated with the SF-12 Health Survey (Ware, Kosinski, and Keller, 1996). Results showed that high Emotional Attention was positively and significantly related to high anxiety, depression, and to low levels of Role Emotional, Social Functioning, and Mental Health. However, high levels of emotional Clarity and Mood Repair were related to low levels of anxiety and depression, high Role Physical, Social Functioning, Mental Health, Vitality, and General Health. This study confirmed the predictive value of Attention, Clarity and Mood Repair regarding the levels of anxiety, depression, and areas related to mental, social, and physical health in university students.     

Service-learning, personal development, and social commitment: a case study of university students in Hong Kong

Service-learning, which combines academic study with community service, is becoming increasingly popular throughout the world. It is ideally suited to achieving both the personal and academic goals of students and the broader goals of civic responsibility and social justice. This paper describes the design of a local service-learning program the author implemented at a university in Hong Kong. Based on survey data collected from 93 university student participants in the program, it illustrates the impact of service-learning on student outcomes. Results show that the majority of the students benefitted as follows: (1) By developing personal autonomy through real world experiences, students develop a recognition of and faith in their potential. It enhances self-assurance, assumption of new responsibilities, and achievement of individual growth. (2) Students move toward becoming responsible citizens and agents of social change. By learning to care for deprived groups in the community, they are assuming meaningful roles and responding to real issues in ways that have a long-lasting impact on their own lives. Recommendations, based on the shortcomings we have witnessed and the changes we have implemented, are also made.     

Emotional intelligence and life satisfaction in Chinese university students: The mediating role of self-esteem and social support

This study examined both the mediation effects of social support and self-esteem for the relationship between trait emotional intelligence and life satisfaction in late adolescence. The participants were 489 Chinese college students with an age range of 17–23 years. Data were collected by using the Wong Law Emotional Intelligence Scale, the Multi-Dimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Path analysis showed that social support and self-esteem fully mediated the relationship between trait EI and life satisfaction in late adolescence. Moreover, a multi-group analysis indicated that the males with high social support are more likely to gain greater life satisfaction than the female counterparts. Implications for future research and limitations of the present findings are discussed.     

Emotional intelligence and life satisfaction in Chinese university students: The mediating role of self-esteem and social support

This study examined both the mediation effects of social support and self-esteem for the relationship between trait emotional intelligence and life satisfaction in late adolescence. The participants were 489 Chinese college students with an age range of 17–23 years. Data were collected by using the Wong Law Emotional Intelligence Scale, the Multi-Dimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Path analysis showed that social support and self-esteem fully mediated the relationship between trait EI and life satisfaction in late adolescence. Moreover, a multi-group analysis indicated that the males with high social support are more likely to gain greater life satisfaction than the female counterparts. Implications for future research and limitations of the present findings are discussed.     

Stress, social support, and teacher burnout in Macau

The present study attempts to document the difficulties that teachers in Macau encountered in their work, the extent to which the job-related difficulties would induce burnout, and whether or not social support could buffer the adverse effects of stress on burnout. In-service teachers enrolled in a teacher training program filled out questionnaires addressing the variables of interest. The results indicated that difficulties with fellow teachers, supervisors, students, and parents of students were associated with burnout. Conjectures were made regarding the noneffectiveness of social support.     

Giving and receiving social support at work: The roles of personality and reciprocity

Social support is an important variable in occupational stress research and theory, yet little is know about the factors that influence the amount of social support one gives, and receives at work. We examined personality (extraversion, neuroticism, and agreeableness) and reciprocity as potential antecedents to giving and receiving support from co-workers. Data collected from 108 participants employed in a number of organizations indicated that giving social support was positively associated with the receipt of social support. Both extraversion and agreeableness predicted giving and receiving non-job support and positive work-related support. The relationship between personality and social support received was, in many cases, mediated by social support given.     

Public health, well-being and reciprocity

Public-health measures are very effective and efficient means of improving health, yet public health is either neglected by the literature or fraught with unease, mainly due to the combination of the aggregate-distributive tension with the element of compulsion. I argue that this unease can be decreased by 1) a pluralist-holistic view of health, situating the normative value of health in its effect on well-being, incorporating both the objective and subjective source of the value of health; and 2) by a rich concept of reciprocity. This article supports Martha Nussbaum's critique of social-contract thinking for placing too much weight on the scale of normal functioning and productive reciprocity, as well as Sen's distinction between well-being and agency freedom. To reach an adequate understanding of the value and goal of public health within the general setting of health care, a pluralist conception of health, well-being and reciprocity is necessary.     

Stress factors,social support,and violence in Israeli society: A quantitative analysis

In the present study violence in Israel for a period of 32 years (1950-1981) was analyzed, within a stress model according to which the probability of violence and agression as a reaction to stress will increase when social support systems fail or malfunction. Following this model, three types of variables were identified: 1. Measures of stress and social change: to the regular social stressors (i.e., inflation and unemployment), we added two measures of affluence (income per capita and rates of cars) as well as population density. 2. Measures of social support: rates of birth to unmarried mothers and marriage and divorce rates served as measures of the strength of the family. Another measure in this category was rates of psychiatric hospitalization. 3. Measures of violence: in addition to rates of homicide, robbery, and all offenses, inward directed aggression (suicide) was included in this category. At the first stage of the data analysis, Guttman's Smallest Space Analysis (SSA-1) was applied, providing a two-dimensional space diagram of the correlations between the variables. At the second stage, a multiple regression analysis was introduced. The findings indicate that the theoretical model received substantial support mainly from four stress measures (inflation, income per capita, cars, and population density) and one measure of social support (divorce). Unemployment contributed significantly (in the expected direction) only to homicide. Some theoretical implications of the findings, as well as their relevance to some developments in Israeli society are discussed, and suggestions are made for future research.     

The role of social support,being present and self-kindness in university student well-being

Poor well-being in university students is a serious concern. Using self-kindness – an attitude of understanding and benevolence in times of adversity or failure – may be key to enabling students to maintain well-being despite the pressures inherent to their student role. This study aimed to test a theoretically guided model of how self-kindness, along with the ability to be in the present moment and the experience of receiving social support, contribute to well-being in university students. Participants were 6195 university students who completed a web-based survey. Structural equation modelling analyses confirmed our hypotheses, showing that: (a) receiving social support is important to the capacity for self-kindness both directly and indirectly through the ability to ‘be present’; and (b) the relationship between social support and well-being is partially mediated by the practices of self-kindness and being present. Overall, the model explained 39% of the variance in student well-being. These findings have implications for our understanding of well-being in university students, as well as the importance of considering self-kindness, on its own, as a target for intervention.     

Social desirability,adequacy of social support and mental health

The extent to which the association between satisfaction with social support and mental health was due to social desirability was determined. Whether this association differed between those high and low on social desirability was also examined. Measures consisted of the Crowne – Marlowe Scale, the Adequacy of Social Integration and Attachment Indices, the General Health Questionnaire, the Zung Self‐Rating Depression Scale and four scales from the Delusions‐Symptoms‐States Inventory. The sample comprised 132 women and 93 men randomly drawn from a larger sample of 756 selected at random from the Canberra electoral roll. Although social desirability was positively associated with satisfaction with social support and mental health, the association between mental health and satisfaction with social support was little reduced when social desirability was controlled, indicating that social desirability did not account for the association between social support and mental health. The association between satisfaction with social support and mental health did not differ between those high and low in social desirability, suggesting that this association was not moderated by social desirability. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Health-related Internet habits and health anxiety in university students

Health-related Internet use has grown rapidly, yet little research has considered how health anxious individuals use the Internet for this purpose. Our aim was to examine the relationships between health anxiety and the extent of, reasons for, and consequences of health-related Internet usage in university students (n = 255). Responses on a purpose-made Internet use questionnaire were correlated with health anxiety scores; multiple regression analyses controlling for depression and anxiety were also conducted. Health anxiety positively correlated with (all ps < .01): frequency of health-related searching (r_s = .163), proportion of health-related information sought (r_s = .200), time spent online for health purposes (r_s = .166), and number of searches for both illness (r_s = .453) and wellness (r_s = .208) information. Health anxiety further positively correlated with advantages perceived in health-related Internet use (r_s = .183), heightened tension (r_s = .364) and relief (r_s = .174) post-search, and perceived doctor disadvantages (r_s = .306), yet a greater likelihood to visit a doctor post-search (r_s = .217). Health anxiety also correlated with six measures of possible addiction to using the Internet for health purposes (r_s range = .171 to .366, all ps < .01). Some (including several potentially dysfunctional) aspects of health-related Internet use correlate with health anxiety. Research evaluating the possible role of Internet use in the development and maintenance of health anxiety is warranted.     

The mental health of university students in the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT

There are increasing concerns globally about the mental health of students. In the UK, the actual incidence of mental disturbance is unknown, although university counselling services report increased referrals. This study assesses the levels of mental illness in undergraduate students to examine whether widening participation in education has resulted in increases as hypothesised by the UK Royal College of Psychiatrists. Patterns of disturbance across years are compared to identify where problems arise. Students (N=1197) completed the General Health Questionnaire-28 either on the first day at university or midway through the academic year for first, second and third year students. Rates of mental illness in students equalled those of the general population but only 5.1% were currently receiving treatment. Second year students reported the most significant increases in psychiatric symptoms. Factors contributing to the problem are discussed.     

Closeness, support and reciprocity: a study of attachment styles in adolescence

In the context of boarding schools, the transactions between adolescents internal working models of self and others, their peers perceptions of them, as well as the reciprocity between perceptions of others and by others were explored. Findings supported the assumed effect of models of the other on a persons social environment, as well as the expected relations between the congruency of models of self and other and the actual reciprocity between perceptions of others and others perceptions of self. Patterns of reciprocity in interpersonal relationships were found to characterize secure (positive reciprocity) and fearful (negative reciprocity) attachment styles, while non-reciprocal relations appeared more frequently among preoccupied and dismissing persons. These findings suggest specific person-environment transactions that may be involved in securing the continuity of styles of relating.     

Perceived social support,coping, and symptoms of distress in American and Spanish students

Abstract

The aim of this study was to test whether coping responses mediated the influence of perceived social support on symptoms of anxiety/depression, social withdrawal, and aggressive behavior in American (N=349) and Spanish students (N=437). Participants completed measures of perceived support, social stress, coping, and distress. Coping partially mediated relations between perceived support and distress, with coping mediation most evident in individuals facing high levels of social stress. Decreased use of disengagement coping by individuals with high perceived support appears to partially explain the protective value of perceived social support. Multiple group covariance structure analysis showed that models linking perceived support, coping, and distress were very similar across cultures, suggesting that the mechanisms underlying decreased risk for individuals with high perceived support may be relatively independent of cultural context, and that interventions designed to increase perceived support and decrease disengagement could be appropriate in both cultures.     

Sex differences in social support, loneliness, and depression among Korean college students

This study examined the sex differences in reports of social support (network size and satisfaction), loneliness, and depression among Korean college students and examined whether measures of social support and loneliness predicted depression scores. In the sample were 452 college students enrolled in four universities in Korea. The women reported a larger social support network size and being less satisfied with their support than the men. Women reported higher scores on the Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale and the Beck Depression Inventory than men. Social support satisfaction scores and network size on the Social Support Questionnaire-6 and scores on the Loneliness Scale predicted scores on Depression in both the groups. Loneliness was the largest predictor of Depression for either sex. The amount of variance in Depression accounted for by Loneliness was 35% for women and 24% for men.     

Stress in 1st-year women teachers: the context of social support and coping

The effects of adverse work environments were examined in the context of other risk/protective factors in this extension of a short-term longitudinal study involving 184 newly appointed women teachers. Regression analyses revealed that-adjusting for preemployment levels of the outcomes and negative affectivity-social support and adversity in the fall work environment were among the factors that affected spring depressive symptoms, self-esteem, job satisfaction, and motivation to teach. Support from nonwork sources was directly related to future improved symptom levels and self-esteem; supervisor and colleague support were directly related to future job satisfaction. Effects of occupational coping, professional efficacy, locus of control, and school factors (e.g., special vs. regular education) were largely nonsignificant. Structural equation analyses indicated that adverse working conditions began to seriously affect the women soon after they started teaching.     

Gender differences in social support and physical health

A large body of prospective data has accumulated linking social support to health, and most social scientists agree that low levels of support are associated with poor physical and mental health. Unfortunately, most of the research has been limited to White men. When women and people of color are included in the designs, the relationships between social support and physical health are more complicated. Prospective population-based studies provide evidence that low support is associated with increased risk of mortality in women. However, in several studies, results indicated that, for specific age groups, women with high social support have increased risk of mortality. Factors that may contribute to the observed gender differences in the social support-physical health relationship are discussed. Future research should include adequate numbers of women and more sophisticated measures of social support to move the field forward.     

Residential density and psychological health: the mediating effects of social support

People report excessive, unwanted social interactions, insufficient privacy, and are observed to be more socially withdrawn under crowded living conditions. If people socially withdraw from one another as a way to cope with crowding, this could lead to an unintended side effect of breakdowns in socially supportive relationships. A breakdown in socially supportive relationships could, in turn, account for some of the pathological consequences of chronic, high density living conditions. An empirical study of 175 male heads of household among inner city residents in India suggests that the adverse effects of residential crowding on psychological health are mediated by a breakdown of social support systems. The study also points to the value of examining social support as an endogenous variable in the stress and health process.