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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Children and Health
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1476020

Moderated serial mediation effects of adaptation problems, academic stress, and interpersonal relationships on the sleep quality of early-year university students

Provisionally accepted
Bo Wang Bo Wang 1*Chenyang Zhao Chenyang Zhao 2*Yang Zhang Yang Zhang 3
  • 1 College of Physical Education, Hunan University of Technology, Zhuzhou, China
  • 2 College of Physical Education, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan Province, China
  • 3 Independent person, Windermere, FL, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Purpose: Due to heightened anxiety levels, sleep disorders become more prevalent among university students. This study, centered on adaptive capacity in early-year university students, aimed to explore the underlying mechanisms through which anxiety affects sleep quality. Methods: Between February 2023 and June 2023, a cohort of first-and second-year university students (mean age 18.8 years) from Hunan Province, China, took part in an online survey. Anxiety was assessed using the Self-rating Anxiety Scale; adaptation problems, academic stress, and interpersonal relationships were assessed using the Adolescent Self-Rating Life Events Checklist; and sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). A moderated serial mediation model, based on Hayes' Model 92, was used to assess the hypothesized model. Results: The survey resulted in 3,490 valid responses. Among respondents, 24% exhibited anxiety symptoms and 30.4% showed abnormal sleep patterns (i.e., PSQI score ≥ 8). The most significant path identified based on indirect effects was anxiety (β = 0.109) → adaptation problems (β = 0.183) → academic stress (β = 0.081) → sleep quality (all pvalues < 0.001). Furthermore, interpersonal relationships moderated the effects of adaptation problems (β = -0.015, p < 0.001), academic stress (β = -0.012, p < 0.001), and anxiety (β = 0.003, p = 0.002) on sleep quality. Conclusions: Elevated anxiety and sleep disorders are common among university students. Adaptive capacity may play a crucial role in sleep disorders among early-year university students. Interventions such as fostering strong interpersonal relationships in campus environments, may prove beneficial in improving academic performance and sleep quality.

    Keywords: Anxiety, Mental Health, insomnia, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Social Networking

    Received: 04 Aug 2024; Accepted: 31 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Wang, Zhao and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Bo Wang, College of Physical Education, Hunan University of Technology, Zhuzhou, China
    Chenyang Zhao, College of Physical Education, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, 410081, Hunan Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.