scholarly journals The Effect of Social Networks and Internet Emotional Relationships on Mental Health and Quality of Life in Students: a Path Analysis Model

Author(s):  
Fatemeh Aliverdi ◽  
Zahra Mehdizadeh Tourzani ◽  
Leili Salehi ◽  
Mostafa Qorbani ◽  
Zohreh Mahmoodi

Abstract Background: Social networks and relationships create a sense of belonging and social identity and therefore have a major effect on mental health and quality of life, especially in young people. The present study was conducted to determine the effect of social networks and Internet emotional relationships on mental health and quality of life in students. Materials and Methods: The present descriptive analytical study was conducted in 2021 on 350 students at Alborz University of Medical Sciences selected by convenience sampling. Data were collected using five questionnaires: Socioeconomic Status, Social Networks, Internet Emotional Relationships Mental Health, Quality of Life and a checklist of demographic details. Data were analyzed in SPSS-25, PLS-3, and Lisrel-8.8.Results: According to the path analysis results, mental health had the most significant positive causal relationship with Internet emotional relationships in the direct path (B=0.22) and the most negative relationship with socioeconomic status (B=-0.09). Mental health was assessed using DASS-21, in which higher scores mean higher mental disorder. Quality of life had the highest negative causal relationship with DASS-21 score in the direct path (B=-0.26) and the highest positive relationship with socioeconomic status in the indirect path (B=0.023). The mean duration of using social networks (B=-0.067) and Internet emotional relationships (B=-0.089) had the highest negative relationship with quality of life.Conclusion: The use of the internet and virtual networks, Internet emotional relationships and unfavorable socioeconomic status were associated with mental disorders and reduced quality of life in the students. Since students are the future of any country, it is necessary for policymakers to further address this group and their concerns.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatemeh Aliverdi ◽  
zohreh mahmoodi ◽  
Zahra Mehdizadeh Tourzani ◽  
Leili Salehi ◽  
Mostafa Qorbani ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Social networks and relationships create a sense of belonging and social identity and therefore have a major effect on mental health and quality of life, especially in young people. The present study was conducted to determine the predictor role of social networks and Internet emotional relationships on mental health and quality of life in students. Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted in 2021 on 350 students at Alborz University of Medical Sciences selected by convenience sampling. Data were collected using five questionnaires: Socioeconomic Status, Social Networks, Internet Emotional Relationships Mental Health, Quality of Life and a checklist of demographic details. Data were analyzed in SPSS-25, PLS-3, and Lisrel-8.8.Results: According to the path analysis results, mental health had the most significant positive causal relationship with Internet emotional relationships in the direct path (B=0.22) and the most negative relationship with socioeconomic status (B=-0.09). Mental health was assessed using DASS-21, in which higher scores mean higher mental disorders. Quality of life had the highest negative causal relationship with the DASS-21 score in the direct path (B=-0.26) and the highest positive relationship with socioeconomic status in the indirect path (B=0.023). The mean duration of using social networks (B=-0.067) and Internet emotional relationships (B=-0.089) had the highest negative relationship with quality of life.Conclusion: The use of the Internet and virtual networks, Internet emotional relationships and unfavourable socioeconomic status were associated with mental disorders and reduced quality of life in the students. Since students are the future of any country, it is necessary for policymakers to further address this group and their concerns.


Author(s):  
Sara Oliveira ◽  
Marina Cunha ◽  
António Rosado ◽  
Cláudia Ferreira

This study aimed to test a model that hypothesized that the compassionate coach, as perceived by the athletes, has an impact on athlete-related social safeness and psychological health, through shame and self-criticism. The sample comprised 270 Portuguese adult athletes, who practiced different competitive sports. The path analysis results confirmed the adequacy of the proposed model, which explained 45% of the psychological health’s variance. Results demonstrated that athletes who perceive their coaches as more compassionate tend to present higher levels of social safeness (feelings of belonging to the team) and of psychological health, through lower levels of shame and self-criticism. These novel findings suggest the importance of the adoption of supportive, warm, safe, and compassionate attitudes from coaches in athletes’ mental health. This study also offers important insights by suggesting that feelings of acceptance and connectedness in team relationships may be at the root of athletes’ emotional processes and well-being.


2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (9) ◽  
pp. 991-1012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyun-Jun Kim ◽  
Karen I. Fredriksen-Goldsen

We assessed factors contributing to ethnic and racial disparities in mental health quality of life (MHQOL) among lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) midlife and older adults. We utilized cross-sectional survey data from a sample of non-Hispanic White and Hispanic LGB adults aged 50 and older. Structural equation modeling was used to test the indirect effect of ethnicity/race on MHQOL via explanatory factors including social connectedness, lifetime discrimination, socioeconomic status (SES), and perceived stress. Hispanics reported significantly lower levels of MHQOL, compared to non-Hispanic Whites. In the final model, the association between ethnicity/race and MHQOL was explained by higher levels of perceived stress related to lower SES, higher frequency of lifetime discrimination, and lack of social connectedness among Hispanic LGB adults. This study suggests that perceived stress related to social disadvantage and marginalization plays an important role in MHQOL disparities among Hispanic LGB midlife and older adults.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 095-096
Author(s):  
Jaewon Lee ◽  
Jennifer Allen

Assets and debts and other accumulated wealth should be considered to understand one’s mental health because they influence quality of life over time. Researchers acknowledge limitations of previous studies regarding mental health, which did not consider net worth [1]. Previous studies have mainly addressed Socioeconomic Status (SES) as an indicator influencing mental health [2,3], rather than considering net worth. As a result, the importance of net worth (Wealth and debt) has been growing, and these factors should be included to deeply understand mental health [1].


2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (12) ◽  
pp. 2047-2057 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ella Schwartz ◽  
Howard Litwin

ABSTRACTBackground:This study examined internal changes in the personal social networks of older people and the relationship between these changes and mental health over time. It focused on two key aspects: emotional closeness and contact frequency with lost and newly added confidants.Methods:The study was based on data from the fourth (2011) and sixth (2015) waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). The study sample consisted of respondents aged 65 years and older who participated in both waves (n = 14,101). We performed OLS regressions in which the scores on two mental health indicators over time – depressive symptoms (Euro-D) and perceived quality of life (CASP-12) – were regressed on the relationship with lost and newly added confidants, controlling for baseline social networks, socio-demographic, and health variables.Results:The nature of the relationship with the lost and newly added confidants was associated with mental health, beyond the number of these confidants. Emotional closeness with newly added confidants was related to improved mental health in both indicators (B = −0.09, CI = −0.14 to −0.04 for depression; B =1.13, CI = 0.67–1.60 for quality of life). Losing frequently contacted confidants was associated with higher depressive symptoms (B = 0.09, CI = 0.02–0.15).Conclusions:The results show the positive mental health implications of adding emotionally close confidants to older adults’ social milieus, and the negative effects of losing frequently contacted confidants. Practitioners are advised to pay attention to the quality of such changing relationships, due to their mental health consequences.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 637-654
Author(s):  
David C. Kondrat ◽  
W. Patrick Sullivan ◽  
Kelli E. Canada ◽  
Jeremiah W. Jaggers

Mental health courts offer alternatives to incarceration for persons with severe mental illness who are involved in the criminal justice system. These courts have the dual function of ensuring treatment for persons involved in the court as well as ensuring the safety of the public. Persons with severe mental illness who are involved in mental health courts rely on others for support, such as family members. Others may buttress the participant from engaging in criminal activities and provide for needs of the participant. The supportiveness as well as the composition of one’s network members may play a role in the success of mental health court participants, such as successfully completing the mental health court program and avoiding incarceration. Little research has explored how social support impacts mental health court participants. We explored how the composition and sense of support of network members were associated with mental health court participants’ quality of life. We regressed quality of life on social support and network characteristics of 80 participants in two mental health courts. Findings suggest that perceived support is positively associated with quality of life, and the proportion of family in one’s network was negatively related to quality of life. Findings suggest that persons involved in mental health courts need supportive others in their social networks in addition to family. More research is needed to explore the reasons having a higher proportion of family members in one’s network is associated with lower quality of life. Practitioners need to pay attention to and leverage mental health court participants’ social networks to help improve their quality of life.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Lilah M. Besser ◽  
James E. Galvin

We used data on 718 dementia caregivers and multivariable linear regression to test associations between residential locale and psychosocial outcomes (grief, wellbeing, burden, quality of life [QOL], self-efficacy/mastery, and social networks). Rural residence (versus urban or suburban) was not associated with the psychosocial outcomes. However, for rural caregivers, greater self-efficacy/mastery was associated with lower grief (versus urban/suburban) and burden (versus suburban), and greater social network quality was associated with lower burden (versus suburban) and higher QOL (versus urban). Interventions targeting self-efficacy/mastery and social networks may be particularly effective at improving rural caregivers’ mental health and QOL.


2014 ◽  
Vol 24 (7) ◽  
pp. 1697-1705 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Bielderman ◽  
M. H. G. de Greef ◽  
W. P. Krijnen ◽  
C. P. van der Schans

2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Malicka ◽  
Katarzyna Skośkiewicz-Malinowska ◽  
Urszula Kaczmarek

Abstract Background The study aims to evaluate the impact of socioeconomic status, general health and oral health parameters on Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL), Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) and mental health in elderly urban residents of South-Western Poland. Methods The 500 residents of Wroclaw, aged 65 and older provided demographic and personal information as well as their medical history. A patient's oral condition were determined based on the clinical oral examination.Quality of Life was assessed using Euro-Quality of Life (EQ-5D), Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14) and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).The association between exposure (socioeconomic status, general health and oral health) and outcome (HRQoL, OHRQoL and mental health variables) were analyzed with the use of four models: P – Poisson model, NB-Negative Binomial model, ZIP – Zero Inflated Poisson model, ZINB – Zero Inflated Negative Binomial model. Results The best model turned out to be the ZINB model, in which a negative binomial distribution in the count equation is assumed. In this model, only 13 independent variables had a significant effect on HRQoL, OHRQoL, and mental health. HRQoL assessed with the EQ-5D is significantly influenced by: living conditions 0.133 (95% CI: 0.001, 0.267, p = 0.049), income -0.348 (95%CI: -0.466, -0.230, p < 0.001), diabetes mellitus 0.437 (95%CI: 0.250, 0.624, p < 0.001), myocardial infarction 0.454 (95% CI: 0.151, 0.757, p = 0.003), stroke 0.543 (95%CI: 0.094, 0.992, p = 0.018) and renal disease 0.466 (95% CI: 0.206, 0.726, p < 0.001). Factors negatively affecting OHRQOL are: the need for oral treatment 0.278 (95%CI: 0.104, 0.452, p = 0.002), the number of missing teeth 0.053 (95%CI: 0.039, 0.067, p < 0.001) and gender 0.271 (95%CI: 0.015, 0.527, p = 0.038) and age -0.025 (95%CI: -0.042, -0.008, p = 0.003). An important factor influencing the level of depression assessed by the PHQ-9 questionnaire may be the material condition -0.225 (95%CI: -0.349, -0.101, p < 0.001). It should be emphasized that living with other people may be a factor that significantly increases the probability of avoiding the occurrence of depression symptoms. Conclusion The study concerning elderly residents of the macroregion in Poland found the impact of socioeconomic, general health and oral health parameters on Health-Related Quality of Life, Oral Health-Related Quality of Life and mental health. Research on the quality of life of the elderly at the local level allowed to assess the factors linked to quality of life of older adults.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document