The association between stressful life events and mental health among Cypriot university students: A cross-sectional descriptive correlational study

Background: Previous research indicates a causal link between stressful life experiences and mental health status. However, little is currently known about the impact of the frequency and seriousness of recent stressful life events on clinical mental discomfort among college students. The aim of this study was to explore the mental health status of undergraduate university students in Cyprus, particularly the association between the severity and number of stressful life events and their mental health status. Methods This cross-sectional descriptive correlational study was conducted to evaluate mental health among undergraduate students. The General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) scale was applied to assess the psychological symptoms of the students and the Life Events Scale for Students (LESS) instrument stressful life events. Results After adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics with logistic regression analysis, it was confirmed that the variable that remained before and after the comparison of stressful life events is gender, with females being 1.6 times more likely to report clinical mental distress symptoms (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.98–2.46). An association exists between clinical mental distress symptoms (GHQ-28 ≥ 24) and stressful life events, which are indicative of the severity of life stressors in a student’s life, and clinically significant mental distress symptoms (x 2  = 56.64, df = 1, p < .001), where an association was observed between high scores on the LESS. However, a statistically significant association was observed between gender and mental distress symptoms. Specifically, females had a higher level of mental distress than did males [ n  = 595 (56.6%) vs. n  = 213 (47.4%), x 2  = 10.65, OR: 1.44, 95% CI: 1.15–1.80, p = .001 ]. Conclusion Individual characteristics, stress, negative life events and psychological distress are all interconnected. University students are a population that is at risk of mental disorders owing to the exceptionally high frequency of mental health issues in this group. The findings emphasise the necessity of widespread early interventions to shield university students against the onset of severe mental illness.