Mediating effect of perceived social support between anxiety,depression and locus of control of college students in disaster area

Objective To study the relationship among perceived social support,locus of control,depression and anxiety of college students in disaster area,and to provide reference for improving their mental health.Methods Two hundred and eighty four college students in the disaster areas were investigated on the depression,anxiety and perceived social support and locus of control by self-rating depression scale(SDS),self-rating anxiety scale(SAS),perceived social support scale(PSSS) and locus of control scale(I-E).Results There were significant differences between gender and grade on depression,anxiety and perceived social support of college students.Locus of control,depression and anxiety showed significant positive correlation,while significant negative correlations were found in perceived social support,depression and anxiety.Locus of control negatively correlated with perceived social support.Perceived social support had partial mediation effect on the associations among locus of control,depression and anxiety in college students.Conclusion The intervention focusing on locus of control and perceived social support might be helpful to prevent depression and anxiety among college students in disaster areas.