Ego-identity And Mental Health Of College Students

The reform and deepening of higher education have made the number of college students more and more,and the psychological development of college students has also attracted attention from all sides.When discussing this topic,we cannot ignore the particularity of the college student group.They are in their late teens,a crucial time to establish a stable identity.The formation of ego-identity is one aspect that constitutes the individual's best psychological function(Waterman,1992).Therefore,the theme of "the effect of ego-identity on mental health" is worth studying.Many researchers have explored the relationship between the two,but the mechanism of action is less discussed.Existential anxiety is a concept put forward by existentialist philosophers and humanistic psychologists,and it contains exactly what many college students think about in the process of establishing ego-identity.Frankl's(1959)theory of meaning therapy believes that purpose in life help individuals to relieve anxiety and develop healthy psychology.Therefore,the author intends to introduce the two variables of existence anxiety and purpose in life,and explore their role in the relationship between ego-identity and mental health.In this study,Ego-identity Status Scale,General Health Questionnaire,Extential Anxiety Scale and Purpose in Life Subscale were used to conduct a questionnaire survey on 564 undergraduates.SPSS 25.0 and the SPSS macro plug-in of Hayes(2013)were used to organize and analyze data.The results of the study found that:(1)College students with D-M status had the highest mental health score(M=10.64),while college students with F status had the lowest mental health score(M=1.50).(2)The results of regression analysis indicate that both present self-commitment and the willingness of future self-commitment can predict mental health.(3)The mediating effect value of extential anxiety in present self-commitment and mental health is-0.316,and the relative mediating effect value is 82.29%;the mediating effect value of extential anxiety in the willingness of future self-commitment and mental health is-0.309,and the relative mediating effect value is 79.64%.(4)With the improvement of the individual's purpose in life level,there is a tendency for the mediating role of extential anxiety in the impact of present investment and the willingness of future self-commitment on mental health.According to the research results of this study,the following conclusions can be drawn:(1)The relationship between different types of ego-identity status and mental health is different.Among them,the undergraduates who are in an foreclosure status(F status)have the best mental health;the undergraduates who are in an diffusion moratorium status(D-M status)have the worst mental health.(2)Two sub-dimensions of ego-identity can predict mental health.Among them,past crises have little to do with mental health;present self-commitment and the willingness of future self-commitment can positively predict mental health,and college students with higher present self-commitment and higher willingness of future self-commitment have higher levels of mental health.(3)Extential anxiety mediates between ego-identity and mental health.Among them,extential anxiety plays a part of the mediating role in the influence of present self-commitment and mental health;extential anxiety plays a part of the intermediary role in the influence of the willingness of future self-commitment and mental health.(4)Purpose in life plays a moderating role in the latter half of the path that mediates the role of extential anxiety in present self-commitment and mental health;purpose in life plays a moderating role in the latter half of the path that mediates the role of extential anxiety in the willingness of future self-commitment and mental health.Finally,in view of the shortcomings of this study,the author made reflections and prospects for future research,and made scientific suggestions for teachers and school management departments.