Author(s)

Zhe Gao ¹, Juan Du ¹, Tingzhou Zhao ¹, Ruixi Li ¹, Yuke Hu ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China

Corresponding Author

Juan Du

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) among students at a medical university in China and to analyze the associations between GAD and factors related to their basic characteristics and sleep situation. The method applied in this paper is a stratified cluster random sampling method used to select on-campus students aged ≥18. An improved questionnaire based on the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale is utilized to screen for tendencies toward GAD. This study also examines the influence of student habits, including late bedtime and sleep-related factors. The findings indicate that approximately 6.437% of respondents exhibit a tendency toward GAD. Significant correlations are identified between GAD and variables such as medical-related majors, family function, academic pressure, emotional issues, and late bedtime, which includes average sleep duration, tendency to late bedtime, and sleep quality (P<0.05). No significant associations are observed between GAD and sex or age (P>0.05). The results suggest that college students, as a special population, have a higher prevalence rate of GAD compared to the general incidence reported in other countries and regions. A subset of students at the medical university exhibits a tendency toward GAD, which is associated with factors such as family function, medical-related majors, and sleep.

KEYWORDS

Generalized Anxiety Disorder; Anxiety; Sleep; College students; Stress

CITE THIS PAPER

Zhe Gao, Juan Du, Tingzhou Zhao, Ruixi Li, Yuke Hu, Factors Influencing Generalized Anxiety Disorder Prevalence among Chinese University Students: A Case Study of a Medical University. Applied & Educational Psychology (2024) Vol. 5: 132-140. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/appep.2024.050621.

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