Commentary about social avoidance and its significance in adolescents and young adults

The effect of fear of missing out on mental health: differences in different solitude behaviors

BACKGROUND

Depression, anxiety, and stress are the main issues that affect the mental health of individuals. Solitude behavior, fear of missing out, and mental health are all closely related.

OBJECTIVE

This study was intended to investigate the relationship between solitude behavior, fear of missing out, and mental health.

METHODS

Short Form of Solitude Behavior Scale, Fear of Missing Out scale, and Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 were employed in this study to investigate 616 college students. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0 for basic data organization, and Mplus 8.3 was used to complete the analysis of the mediation model.

RESULTS

(1) Positive solitude was positively associated with eccentricity and negatively related to loneliness; social avoidance positively correlated with eccentricity and loneliness. (2) Social avoidance and loneliness affected mental health through the mediating effect of fear of missing out, whereas positive solitude and eccentricity did not affect mental health through fear of missing out. Moreover, the results still held in the model with depression, anxiety, and stress as dependent variables.

CONCLUSION

The roles of different solitude behavior in the relationship between fear of missing out and mental health differed. Social avoidance and loneliness as not self-determined solitude could activate the fear of missing out, which could affect mental health.

Assessing Prevalence and Unique Risk Factors of Suicidal Ideation among First-Year University Students in China Using a Unique Multidimensional University Personality Inventor

BACKGROUND

University students with suicidal ideation are at high risk of suicide, which constitutes a significant social and public health problem in China. However, little is known about the prevalence and associated risk factors of suicidal ideation among first-year university students in China, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the prevalence of suicidal ideation and its factors in first-year Chinese university students from a vocational college in Zhejiang during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

Using a cluster sampling technique, a university-wide survey was conducted of 686 first-year university students from Hangzhou in March 2020 using University Personality Inventory (UPI). UPI includes an assessment for suicidal ideation and possible risk factors. Suicidal ideation prevalence was calculated for males and females. Univariate analysis and multivariable logistic regression models were conducted, adjusting for age and sex. Analyses were carried out using the SPSS version 22.0 software.

RESULTS

The prevalence of 12-month suicidal ideation among first-year university students during March 2020 was 5.2%, and there was no significant difference between males and females (4.8% vs. 6.0%, x2 = 0.28, p = 0.597). Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified social avoidance (B = 0.78, OR = 2.17, p < 0.001) and emotional vulnerability (B = 0.71, OR = 2.02, p < 0.001) as positively associated with suicidal ideation.

CONCLUSIONS

Social avoidance and emotional vulnerabilities are unique factors associated with greater suicidal ideation among first-year university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. UPI serves as a validated tool to screen suicide risks among Chinese university students. Encouraging social engagement and improving emotional regulation skills are promising targets to reduce suicidal ideation among first-year university students.

The relationship between depression and social avoidance of college students: A moderated mediation model

BACKGROUND

The fact that depression and anxiety are highly prevalent and often co-occur has been well documented. The present study hypothesized that loneliness and interpersonal trust mediate the relationship between depression and social anxiety, with self-esteem playing a moderating role.

METHODS

1021 college students completed the interpersonal trust scale (ITS), self-rating depression scale (SDS), UCLA loneliness scale, self-esteem scale (SES), and social avoidance and distress (SAD) scale. And descriptive statistical analysis and correlation analysis, structural equation model analysis were conducted.

RESULTS

1) The correlations between depression, loneliness, interpersonal trust, self-esteem and social avoidance were all statistically significant. 2) Loneliness and interpersonal trust mediated the relationship between depression and social avoidance. 3) Self-esteem moderated the relationship between interpersonal trust and social avoidance. Specifically, compared with individuals who had high self-esteem, social avoidance in those with low self-esteem individuals was more susceptible to the effects of interpersonal trust.

LIMITATIONS

First, the questionnaire data may be influenced by social approval. Second, most of the participants were college students. Finally, the causal relationship between the variables could not be inferred.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicated that loneliness and interpersonal trust played mediating roles between depression and social avoidance, and the relationship between interpersonal trust and social avoidance was moderated by self-esteem. It provides a new way to explain the mechanism of depression, and a new perspective for the clinical intervention of depression, that is, from the perspective of their self-experience and self-esteem.