Psychological Distress, Family Support and Employment Status in First-Year University Students in Spain

Jorge Arias- de la Torre, Tania Fernández-Villa, Antonio José Molina, Carmen Amezcua-Prieto, Ramona Mateos, José María Cancela, Miguel Delgado-Rodríguez, Rocío Ortíz-Moncada, Juan Alguacil, Susana Redondo, Inés Gómez-Acebo, María Morales-Suárez-Varela, Gemma Blázquez Abellán, Eladio Jiménez Mejías, Luis Félix Valero, Carlos Ayán, Laura Vilorio-Marqués, Rocío Olmedo-Requena and Vicente Martín
Additional contact information
Jorge Arias- de la Torre: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Tania Fernández-Villa: Grupo de Investigación en Interacciones Gen—Ambiente y Salud (GIIGAS)/Instituto de Biomedicina (IBIOMED), Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain
Antonio José Molina: Grupo de Investigación en Interacciones Gen—Ambiente y Salud (GIIGAS)/Instituto de Biomedicina (IBIOMED), Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain
Carmen Amezcua-Prieto: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Ramona Mateos: Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Salamanca, 37007 Salamanca, Spain
José María Cancela: Faculty of Education Sciences & Sports, University of Vigo, HealthyFit Research Group Galicia Sur Health Research Institute (IIS Galicia Sur), Sergas-UVIGO, 36005 Pontevedra, Spain
Miguel Delgado-Rodríguez: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Rocío Ortíz-Moncada: Departments of Community Nursing, Preventive Medicine and Public Health and History of Science, University of Alicante, 03690 Alicante, Spain
Juan Alguacil: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Susana Redondo: Gerencia de Servicios Sociales, Comisionado Regional para la Droga, 47009 Valladolid, Spain
Inés Gómez-Acebo: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
María Morales-Suárez-Varela: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Gemma Blázquez Abellán: Department of Biomedical Sciences, Area of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Castilla—La Mancha, 13071 Albacete, Spain
Eladio Jiménez Mejías: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Luis Félix Valero: Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Salamanca, 37007 Salamanca, Spain
Carlos Ayán: Faculty of Education Sciences & Sports, University of Vigo, HealthyFit Research Group Galicia Sur Health Research Institute (IIS Galicia Sur), Sergas-UVIGO, 36005 Pontevedra, Spain
Laura Vilorio-Marqués: Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), 33011 Oviedo, Spain
Rocío Olmedo-Requena: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Vicente Martín: The Biomedical Research Centre Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 7, 1-11

Abstract: Mental disorders are consistently and closely related to psychological distress. At the start of the university period, the relationship between a student’s psychological distress, family support, and employment status is not well-known. The aims of this study were: To determine the prevalence of psychological distress in first-year university students and to analyze its relationship with family support and the student’s employment status. Data from 4166 first-year university students from nine universities across Spain were considered. The prevalence of psychological distress was obtained using the GHQ-12, a valid and reliable screening tool to detect poor mental health. To analyze the relationship between psychological distress, family support, and employment status, logistic regression models were fitted. Regarding the prevalence found, 46.9% of men and 54.2% of women had psychological distress. In both genders, psychological distress levels increased as family support decreased. Among women, psychological distress was associated with their employment status. The prevalence of psychological distress among first-year university students in Spain is high. In addition, family support, and employment status for women, could be factors to take into account when developing psychological distress prevention strategies at the beginning of the university period.

Keywords: psychological distress; family support; employment status; university; social epidemiology; survey study (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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