Resilience and Depressive Symptoms Mediated Pathways from Social Support to Suicidal Ideation Among Undergraduates During the COVID-19 Campus Lockdown in China

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected people's mental health. The direct and indirect pathways between social support and suicidal ideation in the period are still unclear. This study explores the pathways from social support to suicidal ideation through resilience and depressive symptoms among undergraduates during the COVID-19 campus lockdown. Methods: During two weeks of the COVID-19 campus lockdown, a total of 12,945 undergraduates at a university in eastern China completed the questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics, suicidal ideation, social support, resilience, and depressive symptoms. A structural equation modeling (SEM) approach was used to analyze the direct and indirect pathways from social support to suicidal ideation via the mediators of resilience and depressive symptoms. Results: Of the 12,917 undergraduates included in this study, 7.4% (n = 955) reported they sometimes had suicidal ideation, 0.8% (n = 109) reported they often had suicidal ideation, 0.9% (n = 122) reported they always had suicidal ideation, and 13.2% (n = 1704) reported they had depressive symptoms. Social support exerted significant direct (β = −0.058), indirect (β = −0.225), and total (β = −0.283) effects on suicidal ideation; 20.5% of the total effect was direct, and 79.5% was indirect. Social support predicted suicidal ideation through resilience (β = −0.038), and depressive symptoms (β = −0.087), explaining 13.4%, and 30.7% of the total effect, respectively. Social support predicted suicidal ideation through the sequential mediation of resilience and depressive symptoms (β = −0.099), explaining 35.0% of the total effect. Conclusion: This is the first study to provide the evidence of pathways from social support to suicidal ideation through resilience and depressive symptoms during the COVID-19 campus lockdown among undergraduates in China. Both direct and indirect pathways from social support to suicidal ideation were identified as intervention targets to reduce suicidal ideation.

Social support enhances the mediating effect of psychological resilience on the relationship between life satisfaction and depressive symptom severity

“…Another model, the affective neuroscience model, indicates that psychological resilience can be boosted in adults by increasing social support, influencing resilience through several pathways 61 . Moreover, social support has been also reported its impact on reducing depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation among undergraduates during the COVID-19 lockdown 4 . The present findings are in line with previous reports on the possible enhancement of resilience by social support, particularly the number of support providers when individuals face stress and seek further support.…”

“…In addition, depression is associated with various psychosocial dysfunctions 2 . In the last 2 years, the world has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused uncertainty and unpredictability in the social, economic, and international spheres as well as living conditions 3,4 . Public health policies in response to the pandemic have restricted people's lives, as they have had to adhere to quarantine and lockdown requirements and maintain social distancing.…”

COVID-19-Related Burnout and Intention of Fully Vaccinated Individuals to Get a Booster Dose: The Mediating Role of Resilience

“…Moreover, resilience partially mediates the relationship between COVID-19 stress and burnout in the general population [ 27 ]. Several other studies during the pandemic era suggest the positive impact of resilience as a mediator, since it has a buffering effect on the development of burnout, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and anxiety [ 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 ]. In addition, evidence suggests that resilience compensates for the negative influence of loneliness, social isolation, and stress on psychological well-being and life satisfaction in the context of a pandemic [ 64 , 65 , 66 ].…”

Depression, Sleep Health & Sociodemographic Correlates in a Nationwide Survey: Implications for Depression Treatment During the COVID-19

“… 16 In addition, another research underlines the grave mental health implications of the pandemic and lockdown measures. 18 These findings echoed in other international contexts, emphasizing the universal nature of these mental health challenges. Along with depression, sleep, which is also essential for overall well-being and physical and mental health, has been notably disrupted during the pandemic.…”