Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study
Objective On 20 July 2021, after the outbreak of COVID-19 at Nanjing Lukou International Airport, several universities started closed management and online teaching. This had a large impact on students’ daily life and study, which may lead to mental health problems. The purpose of this study is to s...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMJ Publishing Group
2023-12-01
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| Series: | BMJ Open |
| Online Access: | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/12/e073347.full |
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| author | Wei Wang Bei Wang Xiang Hong Xiaoqi Zhu Jingfeng Jiang Lerong Qi Fanqi Zhao Jingying Wu |
| author_facet | Wei Wang Bei Wang Xiang Hong Xiaoqi Zhu Jingfeng Jiang Lerong Qi Fanqi Zhao Jingying Wu |
| author_sort | Wei Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objective On 20 July 2021, after the outbreak of COVID-19 at Nanjing Lukou International Airport, several universities started closed management and online teaching. This had a large impact on students’ daily life and study, which may lead to mental health problems. The purpose of this study is to study the effect of screen time on mental health status of university students and the possible mediating effect of sleep status.Methods This was a cross-sectional study. A web-based questionnaire survey was employed that included demographic characteristics, sleep status and mental health status (depression, anxiety and loneliness). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scale was used to assess sleep status, while the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale, Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) scale and Emotional versus Social Loneliness Scale (ESLS) were used to assess depression, anxiety and loneliness, respectively. Linear and logistic regression models were developed and adjusted for confounding factors, and finally the mediating effects were tested using the Karlson-Holm-Breen method.Results Finally, 1070 valid questionnaires were included. Among these, 604 (56.45%) indicated depressive symptoms (CES-D score ≥16) and 902 (84.30%) indicated anxiety symptoms (GAD-7 score ≥10). The mean ESLS score (for loneliness) was 26.51±6.64. The relationship between screen time and depressive symptoms (OR 1.118, 95% CI 1.072 to 1.166) and anxiety symptoms (OR 1.079, 95% CI 1.023 to 1.138) remained significant after adjusting for confounding factors. Meanwhile, sleep status plays an intermediary role in screen time and mental health status (depression and anxiety) and accounts for 13.73% and 19.68% of the total effects, respectively. We did not find a significant association between screen time and loneliness.Conclusion During the outbreak of COVID-19, screen time is inevitably prolonged among university students. There is a relationship between mental health and screen time, and sleep status plays a mediating role. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-79d7fe9afa32454c90019fea50f417ff |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2044-6055 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-79d7fe9afa32454c90019fea50f417ff2025-08-20T02:11:01ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552023-12-01131210.1136/bmjopen-2023-073347Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional studyWei Wang0Bei Wang1Xiang Hong2Xiaoqi Zhu3Jingfeng Jiang4Lerong Qi5Fanqi Zhao6Jingying Wu7Eye Center, Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, ChinaKey Laboratory of Environmental Medicine and Engineering of Ministry of Education, Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Southeast University, Nanjing, ChinaKey Laboratory of Environmental Medicine and Engineering of Ministry of Education, Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Southeast University, Nanjing, ChinaKey Laboratory of Environmental Medicine and Engineering of Ministry of Education, Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Southeast University, Nanjing, ChinaWuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuxi, Jiangsu, ChinaKey Laboratory of Environmental Medicine and Engineering of Ministry of Education, Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Southeast University, Nanjing, ChinaKey Laboratory of Environmental Medicine and Engineering of Ministry of Education, Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Southeast University, Nanjing, ChinaKey Laboratory of Environmental Medicine and Engineering of Ministry of Education, Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Southeast University, Nanjing, ChinaObjective On 20 July 2021, after the outbreak of COVID-19 at Nanjing Lukou International Airport, several universities started closed management and online teaching. This had a large impact on students’ daily life and study, which may lead to mental health problems. The purpose of this study is to study the effect of screen time on mental health status of university students and the possible mediating effect of sleep status.Methods This was a cross-sectional study. A web-based questionnaire survey was employed that included demographic characteristics, sleep status and mental health status (depression, anxiety and loneliness). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scale was used to assess sleep status, while the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale, Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) scale and Emotional versus Social Loneliness Scale (ESLS) were used to assess depression, anxiety and loneliness, respectively. Linear and logistic regression models were developed and adjusted for confounding factors, and finally the mediating effects were tested using the Karlson-Holm-Breen method.Results Finally, 1070 valid questionnaires were included. Among these, 604 (56.45%) indicated depressive symptoms (CES-D score ≥16) and 902 (84.30%) indicated anxiety symptoms (GAD-7 score ≥10). The mean ESLS score (for loneliness) was 26.51±6.64. The relationship between screen time and depressive symptoms (OR 1.118, 95% CI 1.072 to 1.166) and anxiety symptoms (OR 1.079, 95% CI 1.023 to 1.138) remained significant after adjusting for confounding factors. Meanwhile, sleep status plays an intermediary role in screen time and mental health status (depression and anxiety) and accounts for 13.73% and 19.68% of the total effects, respectively. We did not find a significant association between screen time and loneliness.Conclusion During the outbreak of COVID-19, screen time is inevitably prolonged among university students. There is a relationship between mental health and screen time, and sleep status plays a mediating role.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/12/e073347.full |
| spellingShingle | Wei Wang Bei Wang Xiang Hong Xiaoqi Zhu Jingfeng Jiang Lerong Qi Fanqi Zhao Jingying Wu Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study BMJ Open |
| title | Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full | Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study |
| title_fullStr | Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study |
| title_short | Relationship between mental health, sleep status and screen time among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study |
| title_sort | relationship between mental health sleep status and screen time among university students during the covid 19 pandemic a cross sectional study |
| url | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/12/e073347.full |
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