Depression and Its Associated Factors among Undergraduate Engineering Students: A Cross-Sectional Survey in Thailand

Abstract

Background: Depression is a common mental health problem that can affect everyone at different stages of development. Though the prevalence rate of depression among university students is rising, exploration among engineering students is limited. The aim of the study was to examine the prevalence of depression and its associated factors of among engineering students in Thailand.

Methods: A total of 346 students participated in this study. All completed the outcome inventory depression subscale (OI-D) to evaluate the level and prevalence of depression. Other variables assessed included social skills, learning styles, relationship satisfaction, interpersonal difficulty, alcohol use, internet addiction, and neuroticism. Correlation and regression analyses were applied to test the association between sociodemographic and psychosocial factors and depression.

Results: Of the 346 students with the mean age of 20.25 (SD, 1.33), 52.31% were male. Based on the OI-D, 35.3% of participants exhibited symptoms indicative of major depression. Multiple regression showed that only neuroticism, interpersonal difficulties, social skills, and self-esteem appeared to be the significant predictors of depression.

Conclusion: The prevalence of depression among engineering students in Thailand was unexpectedly high compared with the prevalence of depression among engineering students in some other countries. Intra- and interpersonal factors were found to be associated with depression. Further study on identifying these risk factors should be encouraged.

Keywords: depression; engineering undergraduates; interpersonal difficulty; neuroticism; romantic relationship; self-esteem; social skill.