Relationship Between Dispositional Optimism And Depressive Symptoms In College Students:the Role Of Perceived Social Support And Life Stress Events

Objective:(1) To understand the College students’dispositional optimism, explore the relationship between optimism and depressive symptoms and that if there is any significant difference of depressive symptoms among the people with different levels of optimism;(2) To examine the role of social support between optimism and depressive symptoms;(3) To test the effect of life stress events between optimism and depressive symptoms.Methods:The Life Orientation Test-Revised, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, General Social and Academic Hassles Scale, Center for Epidemiological Survey Depression Scale were applied to563college students. T-test, one-way ANOVA, correlate analyze, and linear regression in the software of SPSS17.0were introduced to analyze the individual difference of optimism and the relationships among optimism, social support, stress events and depressive symptoms.Results:(1) The total score of optimism assessment was obviously positive correlated (r=0.37, P<0.01) with that of social support comprehending, while negative correlated with depressive level (r=-0.45, P<0.01) and total score of daily stress (r=-0.10, P<0.05);(2) We took significance test of mediating effect of social support with the mediating effect testing model. It revealed that all results of four T-test reached significant level, and social support took partial mediating effect between optimism and depression which accounted for18.9%of the total effect;(3) It appeared through the moderating effects analyst that the main effect and interaction effect between optimism and stress events were both significant, and the protective impact of the optimistic disposition seemed to be diverse at different stress level.Conclusion:(1) The optimism tendency of college students is moderately and negatively related with depressive symptoms, moderately and positively related with perceived social support, and low and negatively related with life stress events;(2) perceived social support mediated the effect of optimism on depressive symptoms;(3) individual dispositional optimism can moderate the effect of life stress events on mental health, and higher the level of life stress is, stronger the protective effect of the optimism trait is.