The Relationship Between Perceived Stress, State-Trait Anxiety, and Sleep Quality Among University Graduates in China During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the relationship among perceived stress, state-trait anxiety, and sleep quality of graduates to provide a reference for improving their psychological status and attitude adjustment of job-searching during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research was conducted in a descriptive cross-sectional online survey between May 2020 and August 2020. The data were collected from 1,200 participants by using the personal information form prepared by the researchers in line with the literature, the Perceived Stress Scale, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Among the surveyed participants, 47.67% were female, and 10.92% were medical students. The mean perceived stress, state anxiety, trait anxiety, and sleep quality were moderate and found as 31.4±6.69, 46.67±5.80, 49.45±5.54, and 5.94±2.47, respectively. The detection rates of state anxiety and trait anxiety were 48.63 and 49.50%, respectively. There was no significant difference in the detection rate of state anxiety and trait anxiety among different genders and majors (p >0.05). The detection rate of state anxiety and trait anxiety of rural family students was higher than that of urban family students (p <0.01). The score on the PSQI was positively associated with the scores on the perceived stress, state anxiety, and trait anxiety scales (p <0.001 for each model). Sleep quality was associated with increased perceived stress, state anxiety, and trait anxiety among graduates in China. Collectively, the study revealed the relationship between perceived stress, state-trait anxiety, and sleep quality among university graduates in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our results offer novel practical implications for all circles of the society to ensure students’ health under the context of the COVID-19 epidemic.

Subjective sleep alterations in healthy subjects worldwide during COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression

“…Regarding the administered sleep measures, 103 studies reported PSQI scores. Specifically, 100 reported PSQI global scores [ [37] , [38] , [39] , [40] , 42 , 43 , 45 ], [ 46 , [48] , [49] , [50] , [51] , [52] , [53] ], [ [55] , [56] , [57] , [58] , [59] , [60] , [61] , [62] , [63] , [65] , [66] , [67] , [68] ], [ [70] , [71] , [72] , [73] , 75 , [77] , [78] , [79] , [80] , [81] , [82] , [83] , [84] , 86 , 87 ], [ [91] , [92] , [93] , [94] , [96] , [97] , [98] , 102 , 103 , [106] , [107] , [108] , [109] , [110] ], [ [113] , [114] , [115] , [116] , 119 , 120 , [122] , [123] , [124] , [...…”

“…The total scores ranged from 3 to 6. Most of the studies (114) [ [37] , [38] , [39] , [40] , [41] , [42] , [43] , [44] , [45] , [46] ], [ [48] , [49] , [50] , [51] , [52] , [53] , [54] , [55] , [56] , [57] , [58] , [59] , [60] ], [ [63] , [64] , [65] , [66] , [67] , [68] ], [ [70] , [71] , [72] , [73] , [75] , [76] , [77] ], [ [79] , [80] , [81] , [82] , [83] , [84] , [85] , [86] , [87] , [88] , [89] , 91 , [93] , [94] , [95] , [96] , [97] , [98] , [99] ], [ [101] , [102] , [103] , [104] , [105] , [106] , [107] , [108] , [109] , [110] , [113] , …”

The Protective Effect of Health Literacy on Reducing College Students' Stress and Anxiety During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…A cross–sectional study was conducted from December 2020 to February 2021. With a convenience sampling from six universities in Hubei and Guangdong, China, we have collected data with an online platform “Wenjuanxing” (Changsha Haoxing Information Technology Co., Ltd., China) ( 36 ), which was widely used in previous research ( 37 ). Before data collection, a pilot survey was conducted to test the feasibility of the measurements, and minor adjustments to the questionnaire were made accordingly.…”

Adapted work placement delivery method under COVID-19 towards students’ job preparatory behaviours

“…COVID-19 has had an impact on higher education institutions (HEIs) across the world. Many studies have confirmed that, during the pandemic, the majority of students’ concerns revolved around their future professional careers as employment grew more uncertain ( Aristovnik et al, 2020 ; Achdut and Refaeli, 2020 ; Parola, 2020 ; Chen and Zeng, 2021 ; Liu et al, 2021 ; Timonen et al, 2021 ; Zhuang et al, 2021 ). Furthermore, according to a study conducted in the USA, COVID-19 caused 13% of students a delay in graduation and 40% of them failed to find work or internships ( Aucejo et al, 2020 ).…”