The relationship between schizotypal personality features and mind wandering among college students during COVID-19 pandemic: A moderator of depression

Abstract

IntroductionAlthough the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s mental health has been well documented in many studies, the schizotypal personality features in the general population have not received sufficient attention.MethodsStudy 1 is a longitudinal study tracking changes in schizotypal personality features among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 153 Chinese college students were assessed using the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire. Study 2 explored the relationship between schizotypal personality features, mind wandering, and depression. A total of 557 college students completed the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Mind-Wandering Questionnaire during the COVID-19 pandemic.ResultsStudy 1 results showed that the scores from later stages in the pandemic were significantly higher than those from the initial stages on each dimension of schizotypal personality, which means that the schizotypal personality features became more obvious during the COVID-19 pandemic. Study 2 results showed that there was a positive correlation between schizotypal personality features, depression, and mind wandering.DiscussionDepression played a moderating role in the relationship between schizotypal personality features and mind wandering. The schizotypal personality features of college students increase during COVID-19; it has a positive relationship with mind wandering; depression moderates the relationship. We discussed these findings and provided some suggestions about future research.

An investigative study of anxiety, depression and sleep quality in college students after the COVID-19 pandemic - the moderating effect of physical activity

“…From the viewpoint of psychological factors, the reason why exercise frequency can affect anxiety, depression and sleep quality of college students, there exist the mediating variables of external exercise motivation (Takagaki & Yokoyama, 2023) and subjective exercise experience (Zdravkovic & Goldstein, 2023), and external exercise motivation is significantly and positively correlated with exercise frequency, and higher exercise frequency can build up the external motivation (Lee et al, 2023), which can reduce the depressed mood (Luo et al, 2023). Regular participation in sports activities can sharpen college students' emotions and will, so that bad moods can also be alleviated (Zhao et al, 2023). On the other hand, regular exercise can accelerate the accumulation of neurotransmitters in the brain, which lays the foundation for relieving anxiety and promotes good sleep.…”

Factors associated with blood donation among college and university students in Wuhan, China: structural equation model

“…Despite their potential, significant variations in blood donation [ 3 , 6 ] rates among college or university students exist across different Chinese cities (e.g., Jinan, 50.22%; Fuzhou, 38.67%; Shaoxing, 7.33%) [ 7 – 9 ], mirroring global disparities [ 3 , 4 , 10 – 12 ], indicating a universal blood donation strategy may yield limited effectiveness. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected college students’ blood donation behaviors, potentially due to compromised physical or mental health conditions [ 13 , 14 ]. These findings underscore the need for tailored interventions targeting college and university students, emphasizing the urgency of addressing blood donation disparities in this key demographic.…”