Psychological distress among college students of coastal district of Karnataka: A community-based cross-sectional survey
subject: College students; Educational streams; Psychological distress; Suicidal ideation
description: Background: Common Mental Disorders (CMDs) are frequent among adolescents and early adults. National Mental Health Survey of India 20152016 shows alarming results, especially for depression. This study explored the prevalence of psychological distress among college students. Additionally, the relationship between gender, living arrangement with psychological distress in various educational streams were explored. Materials and Methods: Through a cross-sectional community-based survey a total of 4839 college going students of various educational streams in Mangalore, Karnataka were assessed for psychological distress with Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20). Results: Participants had median age of 19 (range = 9) years and the majority (59.5%) were females. The median SRQ score was 4 (range 20) and about 28.5% of students were found to be psychologically stressed. The suicidal ideation was reported by 13.6% of the students. Engineering and Arts/science/commerce students had significantly higher psychological distress scores as compared to health and allied sciences (k = 47.7; p < 0.001) and those who were staying with families (U = 2,687,648.5; p = 0.004) reported higher levels of psychological distress in comparison to those who were staying away from their families. Conclusion: Prevalence of psychological distress was high among students, especially non-medical students, students who were staying with their families, and those who were younger in age. A significant proportion of students had suicidal ideation, which needs early mental health interventions at the college level. 2018
creator: Bhat U. S.; Amaresha A.C.; Kodancha P.; John S.; Kumar S.; Aiman A.; Jain P.A.; Cherian A.V.
source: Asian Journal of Psychiatry, Vol-38, pp. 20-24.
publisher: Elsevier B.V.
date: 2018-01-01
rights: Restricted Access
relation: ISSN: 18762018; PubMed ID: 30384224
format: Online
language: English
type: Article
coverage: Bhat U. S., K. S. Hedge Medical Academy, Mangaluru, India; Amaresha A.C., CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru, India; Kodancha P., K. S. Hedge Medical Academy, Mangaluru, India; John S., Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, India; Kumar S., K. S. Hedge Medical Academy, Mangaluru, India; Aiman A., K. S. Hedge Medical Academy, Mangaluru, India; Jain P.A., Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, India; Cherian A.V., National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Scieinces, Bengaluru, India