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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Sadrivaan A and B (The Hilton Istanbul Hotel )
Objective: Physical activity and social participation might have protective effects on mental health. The study aimed to assess sociodemographics and mental sypmtoms of university students and to assess the relationship (if any) between mental symptoms and social activity participation, including sports.
Method: The study population included first and forth grade students (N=202) of business administration and computer engineering faculties of a private university in Ankara. Data were collected in December, 2007 through a standard questionnaire comprised of questions on sociodemographics and social participation, in addition to Symptom Check List-90-R. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize data, whereas, chi-square and t tests were used to compare groups. For statistical significance, alpha value was taken as 0.05.
Results: Of the study participants, 54.0% were male with a mean age of 21.2±1.8 years. Being member of any student club was found to be higher (p=0.010) among computer engineering students (51.0%) than business administration students (33.7%); 90.9% of the students stated that the social activities in the university were inadequate. GSI (General symptom index) which measures overall psychological distress level was negatively associated with participation in sports (p=0.010) (25.8% vs 43.2% in the two groups). In addition, mean GSI score of students spending more than two hours a week doing sports were found to be lower than their less active counterparts (p=0.03). Association between mental symptoms and participation in musical or other art activities were not found to be statistically significant (p=0.970 and p=0.504, respectively).
Conclusion: Detailed assessments should be made regarding opportunities for sports and other social activities in universities and appropriate interventions should be developed to increase university students’ participation in such activities to promote their mental health.
Key Words: University, student, sports, SCL-90-R, mental health
Method: The study population included first and forth grade students (N=202) of business administration and computer engineering faculties of a private university in Ankara. Data were collected in December, 2007 through a standard questionnaire comprised of questions on sociodemographics and social participation, in addition to Symptom Check List-90-R. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize data, whereas, chi-square and t tests were used to compare groups. For statistical significance, alpha value was taken as 0.05.
Results: Of the study participants, 54.0% were male with a mean age of 21.2±1.8 years. Being member of any student club was found to be higher (p=0.010) among computer engineering students (51.0%) than business administration students (33.7%); 90.9% of the students stated that the social activities in the university were inadequate. GSI (General symptom index) which measures overall psychological distress level was negatively associated with participation in sports (p=0.010) (25.8% vs 43.2% in the two groups). In addition, mean GSI score of students spending more than two hours a week doing sports were found to be lower than their less active counterparts (p=0.03). Association between mental symptoms and participation in musical or other art activities were not found to be statistically significant (p=0.970 and p=0.504, respectively).
Conclusion: Detailed assessments should be made regarding opportunities for sports and other social activities in universities and appropriate interventions should be developed to increase university students’ participation in such activities to promote their mental health.
Key Words: University, student, sports, SCL-90-R, mental health
Learning Objectives: 1)Recognize the role of physical activity (sports) in mental health promotion 2)Discuss possible interventions for promoting physical activity among university students
Sub-Theme: Community mental health