College Students’ Academic Stressors on Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comparison between Graduating Students and Non-Graduating Students

Abstract

The study aimed to investigate the influence of academic stressors on mental health and the mediating effect of social support and self-identity among college students and further studied the difference between the graduating students and non-graduating students during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Recruiting 900 college students as sub-jects, used the college students’ academic stressors questionnaire, social support questionnaire, self-identity scale and depression anxiety stress scales (DASS-21). The results showed that: (1) The college students’ academic stressor posi-tively predicted mental health; (2) Social support and self-identity mediated the relationship; (3) The model also held when academic stressors was replaced by work stressor, but there were differences between the graduating and non-graduating students; (4) The direct effect work stressor on mental health in the graduating group was not significant; (5) The non-graduating students’ work stressor could not predict mental health through social support.