The effects of sensory-processing sensitivity and sense of coherence on depressive symptoms in university students

Abstract

Sensory-processing sensitivity differentiates individuals according to responsivity to internal and external stimuli. It has been positively correlated with depressive symptoms. Meanwhile, sense of coherence, an individual’s perception that stressors are comprehensible, manageable, and meaningful for their life, could improve depression. This cross-sectional study investigated the moderation effect of sense of coherence on the relationship between sensory-processing sensitivity and depressive symptoms in university students. Japanese students ( N = 430) participated in a questionnaire survey that assessed levels of sensory-processing sensitivity, sense of coherence, and depressive symptoms. The results showed that a strong sense of coherence moderated the relationship between sensory-processing sensitivity and depressive symptoms in university students.

Sensory Processing Sensitivity Moderates the Relationships Between Life Skills and Depressive Tendencies in University Students1

“…There are two main reasons to consider a participant's level of SPS in the context of an LST program: (a) SPS could predict various health-related indices, and (b) SPS could indicate individual differences in the beneficial effects from psychological interventions. Many studies have revealed that SPS is correlated with mental health concerns, such as stress (Benham, 2006), depression (Liss, Timmel, Baxley, & Killingsworth, 2005;Yano, Kase, & Oishi, 2019;Yano & Oishi, 2018), and affectivity (Acevedo et al, 2014;Jagiellowicz, Aron, & Aron, 2016). Additionally, SPS has been shown to moderate the beneficial effects from psychological interventions.…”

“…These findings suggest that the types of approaches effective for improving mental health differ according to individual differences in SPS levels; that is, the best choice of which life skills to focus on when constructing an LST program may differ between high-and low-SPS individuals. However, since most studies have focused on high-SPS individuals (Bakker & Moulding, 2012;Brindle, Moulding, Bakker, & Nedeljkovic, 2015;Yano et al, 2019;Yano & Oishi, 2018), further studies should pay attention to low-SPS individuals and provide the findings for reducing their depressive tendency levels (Greven et al, 2019;Lionetti et al, 2018).…”

Factors associated with the mental health of adolescent university students during COVID-19 quarantine in Japan

“…However, few studies [13] have examined how university students cope with these types of stressful conditions by focusing on their stress resistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study, we measured sense of coherence (SOC), the potential of which has been theoretically indicated [14] and empirically tested during normal periods [14,15,16] to investigate the stress resistance of university students and their ability to maintain their mental health status. Antonovsky, who conceptualized SOC [17] de ned SOC as "a global orientation that expresses the extent to which one has a pervasive, enduring though dynamic feeling of con dence that (1) the stimuli deriving from one's internal and external environments in the course of living are structured, predictable and explicable; (2) the resources are available to one to meet the demands posed by the stimuli; and (3) these demands are challenges, worthy of investment and engagement" [18].…”

Effects of yoga in a physical education course on attention control and mental health among graduate students with high sensory processing sensitivity

“…Other possibilities are more theoretical. One study examining the relationship between SPS, Sense of Coherence (SOC), and depression confirmed that SOC coordinates the relationship between SPS and depression (Yano et al, 2019); however, there are few approaches to increasing SOC, and it is not realistic to expect individuals with high SPS to raise SOC for their mental health. Life Skills Training, however, may be a practical approach, and according to a study that investigated the relationship between SPS, Life Skills Training, and depression, specific life skills such as emotional coping modulated the relationship between SPS and depression; even if SPS was high, better life skills resulted in significantly lower scores for depression (Yano et al, 2020).…”