The impact of emotion regulation strategies on anxiety and depression among college students in confinement situation due to COVID-19: a relevance model of goal focus as a moderator.
Mengqi Xiao, Chenhao Zhang, Xuan Chen, Yueyue Su, Jiamin Wei, Yaling Zhuang, Jiaxuan Wu, Dingguo Gao, Jiahua Xu
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Abstract
Background: This study examines the impact of confinement measures implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on the anxiety and depression levels of college students, particularly focusing on how the extended period of confinement significantly contributed to the deterioration of their mood states.
Methods: The present quantitative study utilized a sample of 13,255 participants drawn from three universities located in Guangzhou City. To examine the impact of confinement, the sample included participants from two universities subject to confinement policies and one university without such restrictions. Data were collected via online surveys administered using Wenjuanxing, encompassing the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), the PHQ-9 Depression Screening Scale, the GAD-7 Anxiety Screening Scale, and the Resilience Scale.
Results: The findings revealed that the effectiveness of cognitive reappraisal in mitigating anxiety (t = -8.132, p < 0.001) and depression (t = -8.423, p < 0.001) decreased in less confined environments, and could even reverse, becoming a factor contributing to increased anxiety (t = 2.794, p = 0.005) and depression (t = 2.332, p = 0.020) in highly confined settings with increasing levels of goal focus (t = 9.008, p < 0.001, anxiety; t = 7.408, p < 0.001, depression). Moreover, expressive suppression was found to positively correlate with both anxiety (t = 8.809, p < 0.001, highly confined; t = 3.001, p = 0.003, less confined) and depression (t = 8.324, p < 0.001, highly confined; t = 2.724, p = 0.007, less confined). Goal focus was observed to exacerbate its adverse effects on anxiety (t = 11.03, p < 0.001 in highly confined situations; t = 11.129, p < 0.001 in less confined situations) and on depression (t = 6.301, p < 0.001 in highly confined situations; t = 8.412, p < 0.001 in less confined situations).
Conclusion: This research contributes valuable knowledge to the understanding of the complex interplay between emotional regulation, goal focus, and psychological well-being during times of crisis.
期刊介绍：
BMC Psychiatry is an open access, peer-reviewed journal that considers articles on all aspects of the prevention, diagnosis and management of psychiatric disorders, as well as related molecular genetics, pathophysiology, and epidemiology.
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