Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender.
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected college students, leading to increased anxiety and emotional distress. This study investigated how perceived public health crises relate to anxiety levels in college students, and how social support and gender influence this relationship. Data from 3,165 college st...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2025-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0319799 |
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| _version_ | 1850182631765835776 |
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| author | Taibo He Chia Ching Tu Zhi Wang Danna Hao Xiaozhou Huang |
| author_facet | Taibo He Chia Ching Tu Zhi Wang Danna Hao Xiaozhou Huang |
| author_sort | Taibo He |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The COVID-19 pandemic has affected college students, leading to increased anxiety and emotional distress. This study investigated how perceived public health crises relate to anxiety levels in college students, and how social support and gender influence this relationship. Data from 3,165 college students from six universities in Shaanxi Province, China, were collected and analyzed by using AMOS and SPSS PROCESS 4.0. Results showed that perceived COVID-19 risk significantly impacted anxiety levels, and social support moderated this relationship. Gender also had multiple interaction effects with social support and perceived pandemic risk on anxiety. Overall, the study confirms that COVID-19 quarantine and perceived risk increase stress and anxiety in college students, with social support playing a buffering role, albeit with variations based on gender. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-cfbfca94f1fd4541bc1d48a33cdeb544 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj-art-cfbfca94f1fd4541bc1d48a33cdeb5442025-08-20T02:17:34ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01204e031979910.1371/journal.pone.0319799Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender.Taibo HeChia Ching TuZhi WangDanna HaoXiaozhou HuangThe COVID-19 pandemic has affected college students, leading to increased anxiety and emotional distress. This study investigated how perceived public health crises relate to anxiety levels in college students, and how social support and gender influence this relationship. Data from 3,165 college students from six universities in Shaanxi Province, China, were collected and analyzed by using AMOS and SPSS PROCESS 4.0. Results showed that perceived COVID-19 risk significantly impacted anxiety levels, and social support moderated this relationship. Gender also had multiple interaction effects with social support and perceived pandemic risk on anxiety. Overall, the study confirms that COVID-19 quarantine and perceived risk increase stress and anxiety in college students, with social support playing a buffering role, albeit with variations based on gender.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0319799 |
| spellingShingle | Taibo He Chia Ching Tu Zhi Wang Danna Hao Xiaozhou Huang Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender. PLoS ONE |
| title | Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender. |
| title_full | Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender. |
| title_fullStr | Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender. |
| title_short | Potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis: Multiple interactions of gender. |
| title_sort | potential effect of social support on perceived stress and anxiety in college students during public health crisis multiple interactions of gender |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0319799 |
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