COVID-19-related variables and its association with anxiety and suicidal ideation: differences between international and local university students in Taiwan

Ahorsu, DK, Pramukti, I, Strong, C, Wang, H-W, Griffiths, MD ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8880-6524, Lin, C-Y and Ko, N-Y, 2021. COVID-19-related variables and its association with anxiety and suicidal ideation: differences between international and local university students in Taiwan. Psychology Research and Behavior Management, 14, pp. 1857-1866. ISSN 1179-1578

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Abstract

Purpose: The present study examined the differences between international and local university students in Taiwan regarding COVID-19-related variables, anxiety, and suicidal ideation.

Participants and Methods: An online cross-sectional survey (sent via an online link in an email) was carried out comprising university students (n=529). The students were assessed on measures (including validated psychometric instruments) of perceived susceptibility to COVID-19, perceived sufficiency of resources, sources of COVID-19 information, perceived satisfaction with support, anxiety and suicidal ideation.

Results: Local students had higher susceptibility to COVID-19 (p< 0.001) but decreased sufficiency with resources (p< 0.001) and anxiety (p< 0.001) compared with international students. Staying with family members, satisfaction with support, and information seeking were the factors that predicted anxiety among international students (all p-values< 0.05), while information seeking predicted local students’ anxiety (p< 0.001). Furthermore, staying with family members, susceptibility to COVID-19, and sufficiency with resources were the factors that predicted suicidal ideation among international students (all p-values< 0.05), while being a male and satisfaction with support predicted suicidal ideation among local students (all p-values< 0.05).

Conclusion: International students displayed different COVID-19-related challenges compared with local students. More specifically, international students as compared with local students had lower susceptibility to COVID-19 and higher anxiety. Therefore, healthcare providers should pay more attention to international students’ psychological health and awareness regarding impacts of COVID-19 on health.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Psychology Research and Behavior Management
Creators:	Ahorsu, D.K., Pramukti, I., Strong, C., Wang, H.-W., Griffiths, M.D., Lin, C.-Y. and Ko, N.-Y.
Publisher:	Informa UK Limited
Date:	15 November 2021
Volume:	14
ISSN:	1179-1578
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.2147/prbm.s333226 DOI 1495904 Other
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Jonathan Gallacher
Date Added:	17 Nov 2021 14:54
Last Modified:	17 Nov 2021 14:54
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/44861

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