College Students' Community Attitudes Towards Mental Illness: Do Mental Health Problems and Literacy Matter?

IF 2.2 4区医学 Q3 PSYCHIATRY

Early Intervention in Psychiatry Pub Date : 2025-08-05 DOI:10.1111/eip.70075

Shushan Liu, Lei Wang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

The mental health of college students has become a critical concern, with depression, anxiety and stress (DAS) reaching alarming levels. Despite the vital role of societal attitudes in shaping mental health outcomes, the factors and mechanisms influencing college students' community attitudes towards mental illness (CAMI) remain underexplored.

Aim

This study aims to investigate the CAMI, mental health problems and mental health literacy (MHL) among Chinese college students and to analyse the relationships between them.

Methods

A total of 600 college students from Jinan City, Shandong Province, China, completed the Community Attitudes towards the Mentally Ill Scale, the Depression–Anxiety–Stress Scale and the Mental Health Literacy Scale. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM).

Results

The findings showed that DAS significantly negatively predicted positive CAMI, while MHL significantly positively predicted more favourable CAMI. Notably, MHL, as a moderating variable, attenuated the negative predictive effect of DAS on positive CAMI.

Discussion

The results of this study highlight the crucial role of the government, universities, and families in guiding college students to develop more positive CAMI, particularly in the post-pandemic era. Efforts should focus on creating a supportive mental health environment within universities. Additionally, the direction of mental health education should shift from merely imparting knowledge to a more contextualised and interactive educational approach, aiming to enhance understanding and acceptance of mental illness.

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大学生群体对心理疾病的态度：心理健康问题与文化素养有关系吗？

大学生的心理健康已成为人们关注的焦点，抑郁、焦虑和压力（DAS）已达到令人担忧的水平。尽管社会态度在心理健康结果的形成中起着至关重要的作用，但影响大学生社区精神疾病态度（CAMI）的因素和机制仍未得到充分探讨。目的本研究旨在调查中国大学生的CAMI、心理健康问题和心理健康素养（MHL），并分析三者之间的关系。方法对山东省济南市600名大学生进行社区精神疾病态度量表、抑郁-焦虑-压力量表和心理健康素养量表。数据分析采用结构方程模型（SEM）。结果DAS显著负向预测阳性CAMI，而MHL显著正向预测更有利的CAMI。值得注意的是，MHL作为调节变量，减弱了DAS对阳性CAMI的负预测作用。本研究的结果强调了政府、大学和家庭在引导大学生发展更积极的家庭行为方面的关键作用，特别是在大流行后时代。努力的重点应该是在大学内创造一个支持性的心理健康环境。此外，心理健康教育的方向应从仅仅传授知识转变为一种更具情境性和互动性的教育方法，旨在增进对精神疾病的理解和接受。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Early Intervention in Psychiatry 医学-精神病学

CiteScore

4.80

自引率

5.00%

发文量

112

审稿时长

6-12 weeks

期刊介绍： Early Intervention in Psychiatry publishes original research articles and reviews dealing with the early recognition, diagnosis and treatment across the full range of mental and substance use disorders, as well as the underlying epidemiological, biological, psychological and social mechanisms that influence the onset and early course of these disorders. The journal provides comprehensive coverage of early intervention for the full range of psychiatric disorders and mental health problems, including schizophrenia and other psychoses, mood and anxiety disorders, substance use disorders, eating disorders and personality disorders. Papers in any of the following fields are considered: diagnostic issues, psychopathology, clinical epidemiology, biological mechanisms, treatments and other forms of intervention, clinical trials, health services and economic research and mental health policy. Special features are also published, including hypotheses, controversies and snapshots of innovative service models.