The Research Desk
Students who see stress as enhancing have better mental health outcomes over time, particularly in depressive symptoms.
Stress Mindsets Forecasting Students' Mental Health Trajectories: Evidence From an EMA Study.
- Resilience
- Growth
Journault, A., Singh, K., Maddala, T., Calrson, J., Behera, S., Jamieson, J.
In plain language
This study explores how college students' beliefs about stress—whether they see it as debilitating or enhancing—can predict their mental health outcomes over time. By using a mobile app to repeatedly assess students' mental health over eight weeks, researchers found that those who viewed stress as enhancing experienced more favorable changes in depressive symptoms. This suggests that stress mindsets, or the way we perceive stress, can influence our mental health trajectories.
The study highlights the potential of using mobile ecological assessments to track and intervene in students' mental health in real-time. By understanding students' stress mindsets, educators and mental health professionals might better identify those at risk and tailor interventions to help them manage stress more effectively.
Key findings
- Students with a 'stress-is-enhancing' mindset had more favorable depressive symptom trajectories.
- Stress mindsets predicted changes in depressive symptoms but not anxiety or social well-being.
- The association between stress mindset and depression persisted even when accounting for anxiety and demographics.
- The study used a mobile app to track mental health, highlighting its potential for real-time intervention.
Why it matters
Understanding and potentially shifting stress mindsets could be a valuable tool in promoting better mental health and resilience among college students.
Try this today
Students and educators can benefit from recognizing and cultivating a 'stress-is-enhancing' mindset to potentially improve mental health outcomes. This mindset shift could be integrated into stress management workshops or counseling sessions.