Life experiences, perceived stress, social support and mental health services: Military and non-military college students

This study was conducted to examine potential differences between military and non-military undergraduate students on their life experiences, perceived stress, perceived social support, and likelihood of seeking mental health services. Additionally, it looked at whether or not life experiences, perceived stress, and perceived social support predict the likelihood of seeking mental health services, and if social support plays a role in mediating the effects of life experiences and feeling stressed. A sample of 101 undergraduate students was utilized for this study. Multivariate Analysis of Covariance was used to examine the effect of the two groups on four dependent variables, and if these effects were impacted by assessing gender as a covariate. The results showed no significant multivariate effect for the group or for the covariate, gender. The first Multiple Regression analysis indicated that the set of predictor variables (life experiences, perceived stress, and perceived social support) did not predict the likelihood of seeking mental health services. The second Multiple Regression analysis indicated that perceived social support is a partial mediator between life experiences and perceived stress. The results of this study indicate that military undergraduate students appear to be doing at least as well as non-military undergraduate students.