New Insights on the Mediating Role of Emotional Intelligence and Social Support on University Students’ Mental Health during COVID-19 Pandemic: Gender Matters

Abstract

Due to the demanding changes caused in the population by the COVID-19 pandemic, including a persisting experience of fear and social isolation, multiple studies have focused on the protective role of several psychological characteristics on mental health. Emotional intelligence and social support are commonly linked to mental health and well-being. The present study aims to analyze the mediator role of emotional intelligence and social support on university students’ mental health, taking into consideration the role of gender differences. An online questionnaire was administered to a sample of 923 university students during the COVID-19 lockdown in Portugal. Significant gender differences were found on mental health symptoms, emotional intelligence, and social support. A double mediation model was computed to verify if gender influences on mental health were mediated by emotional intelligence and social support. The results show indirect effects of gender on mental health. However, as both mediators mediate in the opposite direction, the total indirect effects become null. Thus, a strong direct effect of gender on mental health remains. The results of the present study have theoretical implications on protective factors of mental health by gender and practical implications for psychological intervention in university counselling services.

Mental Health during COVID-19 Pandemic: The Role of Optimism and Emotional Regulation

“…Hence, the results may not be generalized to other populations or countries. Second, the participants mainly consisted of women, and it has recently been shown that there are important gender differences in student mental health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic [79][80][81][82]. This limits the generalizability of the results to the male population.…”

Importance of Soft Skills in Health Sciences Students and Their Repercussion after the COVID-19 Epidemic: Scoping Review

“…All the texts consulted agree on the importance of emotional competences in the personal and professional development of future nurses [ 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 ] ( Table 2 ). Some authors, such as Kim [ 33 ] or Chew [ 34 ], evaluated the influence of emotional intelligence (EI) on students’ academic performance and highlighted communication as the main element within EI.…”

“…Non-technical skills refer to the management of situations in relation to other people), however not with regard to soft skills. Other authors, such as Soto-Rubio [ 42 ], Barros [ 43 ], or Utvaer [ 44 ], found that EI was shown to be a protective factor against psychosocial risks in nursing professionals, especially work-related stress, and also in relation to mental health in the general population. Mental health was reported to have worsened in the population during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially among women and university students [ 45 ].…”

Relationship between emotional intelligence and learning motivation among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic: A serial mediation model

“…On the one hand, with emotional intelligence, college students may have more social skills ( Trigueros et al, 2020 ), have better interpersonal relationships ( Mercader-Rubio et al, 2022b ), be better able to communicate and interact with society and receive more external support. Emotional intelligence can help college students to better access social support ( Barros and Sacau-Fontenla, 2021 ) and thus motivate them to engage seriously in their studies. On the other hand, social support helps college students adopt appropriate ways to cope with their academic difficulties and provides them with emotional support at the psychological level.…”