Prevalence of psychological distress and the effects of resilience and perceived social support among Chinese college students: Does gender make a difference?

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the gender differences in the prevalence of psychological distress, and in the effects of resilience and perceived social support on psychological distress among Chinese college students. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in current study. The psychological distress, resilience, and perceived social support of 1400 university students of China were measured using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and the 12-item Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, respectively. Multiple group analyses were conducted using structural equation modeling to examine the moderating role of gender in the effects of resilience and perceived social support on psychological distress. The prevalence of psychological distress was 90.86%. Female college students reported a higher prevalence of psychological distress (94.07%) than males (89.11%). Among male college students, the resilience was more strongly associated with psychological distress than perceived social support (-0.18 vs.-0.16). In contrast, among female college students, resilience was not significantly related, but perceived social support was closely related with psychological distress (0.01 vs. -0.31). In conclusion, Chinese female college students are more vulnerable to psychological distress than males. Gender moderates the relationships among resilience, perceived social support, and psychological distress.

Keywords: Depression; Gender; Mental health; Personality; Structural equation modeling.