Data_Ssheet_1_Internet Addiction, Symptoms of Anxiety, Depressive Symptoms, Stress Among Higher Education Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic.docx

Poor mental health is a growing concern among young people during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The aim of this study was to assess the associations of Internet addiction with depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and stress in higher education students during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as to examine these mental health problems in the context of study-related characteristics. The research sample consisted of 3,099 participants from the Czech Republic (CZ: 1,422) and Slovak Republic (SK: 1,677). The Internet Addiction Test (IAT), the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire for depressive symptoms (PHQ-9), and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) were used to measure mental health problems. The analyses also included demographic data (gender and age) and study-related characteristics (form of study, degree of study, field of study, distance between college and home, and housing during the semester). Based on the results of frequency and descriptive analyses, the prevalence of mental health problems was high. The most serious levels of Internet addiction (IAT cut-off point ≥ 50), to which attention should be paid, were found in 3.5% of Czech and 6.2% of Slovak students. Using the standard cut-off point of GAD-7 ≥ 10, 14.1% of Czech and 11.6% of Slovak students were identified with anxiety symptoms. Regarding the PHQ-9 with the cut-off point ≥ 10, 23.4% of Czech and 19.1% of Slovak students had depressive symptoms, which should be addressed. Using the PSS cut-off point ≥ 27, 12.9% of Czech students and 9.1% of Slovak students perceived high stress. The quantile regression analysis showed that Internet addiction was positively associated with anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and stress in all of the analyzed cases (p-value < 0.001). In terms of study-related characteristics, the binomial logistic regression analysis revealed that risk factors for mental health problems in Czech and Slovak students were mainly full-time form of study and living away from home during the semester. Internet addiction, anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and stress are issues that require increased attention, and professionals and policy-makers should implement interventions to effectively prevent and help students with psychological problems.

在新型冠状病毒肺炎（COVID-19）疫情爆发期间，青年人群的心理健康问题日益引起关注。本研究旨在评估互联网成瘾与高等教育学生在疫情期间抑郁症状、焦虑症状及压力之间的关联，并探讨这些心理健康问题在学业相关特征背景下的表现。研究样本包括来自捷克共和国（CZ：1,422人）和斯洛伐克共和国（SK：1,677人）的3,099名参与者。本研究采用了互联网成瘾测试（IAT）、广泛性焦虑障碍量表（GAD-7）、抑郁症状患者健康问卷（PHQ-9）和感知压力量表（PSS）来衡量心理健康问题。分析还纳入了人口统计学数据（性别和年龄）以及学业相关特征（学习形式、学习程度、专业领域、学校与家庭之间的距离以及学期期间的住宿情况）。基于频率和描述性分析的结果，心理健康问题的普遍性较高。值得注意的是，在捷克学生中，有3.5%的学生，在斯洛伐克学生中，有6.2%的学生达到了严重的互联网成瘾水平（IAT切点≥50）。以GAD-7的标准切点≥10为标准，捷克学生中14.1%，斯洛伐克学生中11.6%被诊断为焦虑症状。关于PHQ-9，以切点≥10为标准，捷克学生中有23.4%，斯洛伐克学生中有19.1%表现出抑郁症状，这些问题亟待解决。使用PSS的切点≥27，12.9%的捷克学生和9.1%的斯洛伐克学生感知到高水平压力。量回归分析显示，在所有分析案例中，互联网成瘾与焦虑症状、抑郁症状和压力呈正相关（p值<0.001）。在学业相关特征方面，二元逻辑回归分析揭示了捷克和斯洛伐克学生心理健康问题的风险因素主要是全日制学习形式和在学期期间离家居住。互联网成瘾、焦虑症状、抑郁症状和压力是亟待加强关注的问题，专业人士和政策制定者应实施干预措施，以有效预防和帮助有心理问题的学生。