Chinese college freshmen’s mental health problems and their subsequent help-seeking behaviors: A cohort design (2005-2011)

Abstract

Based on cohort data obtained from 13,085 college freshmen’s (2005 to 2011) SCL-90 (the Symptom Check-List-90) reports and their subsequent 4-year psychological counseling help-seeking records, this study examined the association between college students’ mental health problems and help-seeking behaviors across four college years. Female students’ mental health problems and help-seeking behaviors increased from the 2005 to the 2011 cohorts and no changes emerged for male students across cohorts. Overall, male students reported higher levels of mental health problems than did female students in the first college year, whereas female students reported more help-seeking behaviors than did male students in the following four college years. College students’ mental health problems was associated positively with help-seeking behaviors. College students were more likely to seek help from the college psychological counselling center when they experienced relatively few or quite a lot of mental health issues (i.e., an inversed U shape). Implications for future studies and practices are discussed.

Lifetime and 12‐month treatment for mental disorders and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among first year college students

“…On balance, this unmet need is roughly the same for mental disorders as for STB, with only 25–30% of first year college students with a mental disorder/STB receiving any treatment in a given year. Our data confirm previous reports on the use of services among college students, although our estimates on treatment utilization are somewhat on the lower end of what is generally found in the United States (Han et al, ; Hunt & Eisenberg, ), Europe (McLafferty et al, ; Verger et al, ), and Asia (Liu et al, ). Despite the observed unmet need, the presence of mental disorders/STB remains a strong predictor of treatment.…”

“…In addition, the screening instrument precludes detailed assessments on important socio-demographic predictors (e.g., detailed family situation at time of survey). Fifth, this study is limited to the use of cross-sectional data, adjusting for a limited range of basic socio- Verger et al, 2010), and Asia (Liu et al, 2017). Despite the observed unmet need, the presence of mental disorders/STB remains a strong predictor of treatment.…”

“…Although available data suggest that the treatment gap for mental disorders and STB is high among college students, these prior studies have several limitations. First, most studies are confined to a limited number of countries such as the United States (Eisenberg et al, 2011), China (Liu et al, 2017), Northern Ireland (McLafferty et al, 2017), or France (Verger, Guagliardo, Gilbert, Rouillon, & Kovess-Masfety, 2010). Second, many studies restrict their samples to specific college departments (e.g., psychology and medicine- Sun et al, 2017).…”

Association between Breakfast Consumption and Depressive Symptoms among Chinese College Students: A Cross-Sectional and Prospective Cohort Study

“…Similarly, a meta-analysis, which included 39 studies, reported an overall prevalence of depression among Chinese university students of 23.8% [3]. Although the prevalence of depressive symptoms among college students in these studies differs from that of the general population (37.9% for depressive symptoms) [4], which may be due to the use of different measurement tools, different methodologies, and different appraisal standards, previous studies have also found a general increase in mental health problems in college students [5]. Furthermore, depression carries the greatest risk for suicide, since most suicide victims were also found to suffer from depression (60%) [6].…”

Association between Muscular Strength and Depressive Symptoms among Chinese Nursing Freshmen—A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Similarly, the prevalence of depression or depressive symptoms among first-year university students in mainland China and Hong Kong was 24.8% and 43.9, respectively ( 3 ) . Although the prevalence of depressive symptoms among college freshmen in these studies differ from that of the general population (37.9% for depressive symptoms) ( 4 ) , which may be due to the use of different measurement tools, different methodologies, and different appraisal standards, previous studies have also found a general increase in mental health problems in college students ( 5 ) . Furthermore, it is well known that depression contributes to the onset of cancer ( 6 ) , diabetes mellitus ( 7 ) , coronary heart disease ( 7 ) , stroke ( 8 ) , and metabolic syndrome ( 9 ) .…”