The impact of perfectionism, sleep quality, resilience, nature contact, mobile phone use and sense of community on young people’s mental health in the UK

Abstract

The mental health of young people has become a growing concern, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study assesses contemporary predictors of anxiety and depression in university students aged 18–25 years, focusing on six key predictor variables: sleep quality, resilience, perfectionism, sense of community, nature contact, and mobile phone use. 185 undergraduate students completed validated psychometric measures for each predictor alongside the GAD-7 and PHQ-8 scales. Results showed that perfectionism, poor sleep quality, and low resilience were significant predictors of anxiety. For depression, poor sleep, perfectionism, low resilience, and diminished sense of community were significant predictors. Notably, sleep quality emerged as the strongest predictor of depressive symptoms, while perfectionism was the most robust predictor of anxiety. These findings highlight the multifactorial nature of mental health in student populations and underscore the importance of targeting perfectionism, sleep hygiene, and resilience in mental health interventions.