Correction: Psychological well-being and its associated factors among university students in Sichuan, China

Mental health, including emotional, psychological, and social well-being, is vital at every life stage (World Health Organization, 2022;Dattani et al., 2023;Mental Health, 2024). Wellbeing, as defined by Huppert (2009) and echoed by Diener et al. (2009), Ryan and Deci (2001), and Tov (2018), is the experience of health, happiness, and prosperity. It includes good mental health, high life satisfaction, a sense of purpose, and stress management (Davis, 2019), encompassing both hedonia (subjective well-being) and eudaimonia (psychological wellbeing). This aligns with Healthy People 2030's definition of overall life satisfaction, reflecting both health and non-health factors (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2020).Psychological well-being (PWB) is a multifaceted concept that encompasses aspects of positive functioning, self-realization, and the ability to face life's challenges (Ryff, 1989). Various models have been proposed to explain this, such as Ryff (1989), Antonovsky (1979), Deci and Ryan (2008), and Seligman's (2011) PERMA model of well-being in positive psychology. Seligman's (2011) PERMA model in positive psychology suggests that psychological well-being is enhanced through fostering Positive emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment. Kern et al. (2016) developed the EPOCH model, a framework for optimal adolescent functioning that aligns with Seligman's PERMA model. It identifies five traits that support adult flourishing: Engagement, Perseverance, Optimism, Connectedness, and Happiness.Emerging adulthood is crucial for students to gain autonomy from parents (Sussman and Arnett, 2014) and explore opportunities on campus, laying the foundation for full social integration postgraduation (Porru et al., 2022). The five factors of the EPOCH model are believed to support well-being in adulthood, aligning with the PERMA model's key elements (Kern et al., 2016).Studies across various countries, including the US, Australia, China, Iran, and Indonesia, support the cross-cultural invariance and equivalence of the EPOCH measure, though further validation and extension to diverse adolescent groups are needed (Kern et al., 2016;Kern et al., 2019;Setyandari, 2019;Taheri et al., 2021;Zeng and Kern, 2019). University students, as a distinct age group and social role in transition from adolescence to adulthood, face a myriad of unique challenges. Research conducted in Thailand has delved into the application of the EPOCH measure among college students (Rhein and Nanni, 2022).University students have the potential to make significant societal contributions, and public awareness of their mental health issues is rising (Chen, 2024). However, anxiety, stress, depression, and challenging living circumstances remain significant barriers to students' well-being. The reports of mental health issue among students have been increasing globally (Orygen, 2023;Youth Insight, 2023). According to the report from the Healthy Minds Network (HMS) for 2022-2023, 36% of surveyed students indicated receiving counseling or therapy. In China, the prevalence of anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and suicide attempts among college students has significantly increased over the past decade (Chen et al., 2022).Studies suggest a global decline in student' well-being at universities (Riva et al., 2020). Cross-cultural research examining happiness among college students from 24 countries reported that students from Southeast Asia (including China) had lower levels of happiness when compared to students from South America, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Caribbean (Peltzer et al., 2017). Additionally, research indicates that mental health tends to worsen after students enter college, with college students generally reporting worse mental health than non-students (Worsley et al., 2022). However, research focusing specifically on Chinese students' well-being remains insufficient (Dobosz and Hetmańczyk, 2023).There have been many one-child births in China since the enactment of the policy in 1980. As the birth rate declines, there will be a substantial number of families with only one child (National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China, 2023a). Non-only children face challenges in terms of having less access to material educational resources and parenting styles that are conducive to their skill development, compared to only children (Li et al., 2024). Previous studies have increasingly suggested that the well-being of rural children was affected by the impact of parental absence (Zhao and Yu, 2016), family economic status (Wen and Lin, 2012), and neighborhood environment (Zhao et al., 2017).Financial stress is the cause of mental health deterioration, which results in poor academic performance, academic dishonesty, in addition to mental disorders such as anxiety, depression and Burnout Syndrome (Pokhrel et al., 2020). China's student financial assistance system, funded by the government and supplemented by schools and society, supports needy students and rewards high achievers. Aid is provided in tiers to address varying needs through a well-structured mechanism (State Council of the People's Republic of China, 2022). In this study, financial assistance is categorized into four classes: the first targeting specific vulnerable groups, the second for poorer families not in the first category, the third covering general poor families, and none for families receiving no assistance (State Council of the People's Republic of China, 2018).Addressing these challenges requires culturally tailored approaches to support students' well-being, recognizing variations in psychological well-being across cultures. Studies suggest that while Western cultures often define well-being through positive affectivity, hedonic balance, and individualistic traits like autonomy and self-esteem (Joshanloo, 2014), Eastern cultures, including China, emphasize moral values, contentment, harmony, and spiritual fulfillment (Suh and Choi, 2018;Wirtz et al., 2009). This cultural distinction underscores the necessity of designing psychological well-being interventions that are both evidencebased and culturally appropriate. Demographic and socio-economic characteristics are important determinants of youth development and can be located in the exosystem (Gomez-Baya et al., 2023). The literature on the effects of socio-demographics on psychological well-being in university students has indicated differences by gender and cultural background, place of residence and neighborhood and family status (Zeng and Kern, 2019;Miles et al., 2020). China's population size and geography present tremendous challenges and opportunities to improve the mental well-being of whole populations (Ni et al., 2020). Kern et al. (2016) suggested five positive psychological characteristics in EPOCH model that support positive youth development. Moreover, most existing research was conducted with adolescent samples worldwide (Zeng and Kern, 2019;Taheri et al., 2021;Maurer et al., 2021;Setyandari, 2019;Rhein and Nanni, 2022), meaning that more research is needed with emerging adults in China. Addressing these issues in the Chinese context will ensure that all students have the resources and support they need to thrive both academically and personally. Thus, comprehending their level of psychological well-being and its associated factors is pivotal for fostering their mental health and holistic development.In this study, we aimed to investigate the level of psychological well-being and its associations with demographic factors among Chinese undergraduate students, specifically gender, grade, poverty level, and locality. Within China's unique socio-cultural and economic context, factors such as rural-urban divides, financial strain, and the legacy of the one-child policy are particularly relevant to understanding students' well-being. Additionally, the disparities in educational resources and financial aid across regions further highlight the need to explore these demographic influences. This study seeks to provide culturally relevant insights to inform targeted interventions that promote the well-being of Chinese university students.Considering the time constraints and limited resources, we adopted a convenience sampling method to efficiently gather data from undergraduate students at our university between January and May 2024. The survey was conducted on the WJX online platform, leveraging students' high digital engagement and aligning with current trends in online data collection (Lefever et al., 2007;Couper, 2017). Recruitment was facilitated through multiple official channels, including public elective courses, the university's WeChat account ("Boya Xinyu"), counselor studio QQ groups, class meetings, and campus events. After providing informed consent online, participants completed the questionnaire anonymously on the platform. This approach ensured both the integrity of the data and the privacy of the participants, as no personally identifiable information was collected.The sample size was large (N = 4,911) and represented diverse demographic and socioeconomic backgrounds, aligning closely with national data on gender distribution in higher education (National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China, 2023b). The rural-urban distribution also reflected broader trends, highlighting increased access to higher education for rural students despite national urban residency rates (National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China, 2021). This large sample enhances the reliability and generalizability of the findings, capturing the demographic diversity of Chinese university students.The demographic information of the participants, including the year of study, gender, only child status, locality, financial aid status and domestic average income, was recorded.The EPOCH Measure of Adolescent Well-being, available in both English (Kern et al., 2016) and Chinese (Zeng and Kern, 2019) was used in this study. It has previously demonstrated good internal consistency across all its subscales, with Cronbach's α values ranging from 0.78 to 0.89. All participants responded to the 20-item EPOCH, which contains subscales of Engagement (e.g., 'I get completely absorbed in what I am doing'), Perseverance (e.g., 'I finish whatever I begin'), Optimism (e.g., 'I think good things are going to happen to me'), Connectedness (e.g., 'When I have a problem, I have someone who will be there for me') and Happiness (e.g., 'I love life'). Each item is rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ' Almost never' to 5 ' Almost always' , reflecting how frequently the participants experience for each aspect of well-being. These dimensions collectively provide a comprehensive assessment of positive psychological functioning and well-being in adolescents.Data were collected from university students at Chengdu University of Information Technology, with 4,911 out of a total of 25,000 students (19.6%). The inclusion criteria for participants in this study are Chinese nationality, university students aged between 18 and 25 years, and full-time enrollment at the university during the study. Participants were excluded if they were part-time students, international students, or not enrolled as students, as they either had a relatively small presence at the university or were unable to commit to the entire duration of the survey. Ethical considerations were addressed by ensuring anonymity, avoiding identifiable data, and obtaining electronic informed consent with clear communication of participants' rights. All students completed the questionnaire anonymously, ensuring data integrity and respect for privacy.Descriptive statistics were used to compute means, standard deviations, frequencies, and percentages. Independent sample t-tests and analysis of variance were employed to assess the statistical significance of differences between groups, and multiple linear regression analysis was used to explore the complex interactions between variables. IBM SPSS for Mac (version 26.0) was used to analyze the data.Compared with previous studies, the Cronbach's alpha value obtained in this study is relatively high (Cronbach's α = 0.952). Specifically, in previous studies, the Indonesian version (Simanjuntak et al., 2023) had a Cronbach's alpha value of 0.889, and the Swedish version (Maurer et al., 2021) had a Cronbach's alpha value of 0.91. The subscales had acceptable reliability: Engagement (α = 0.873), Perseverance (α = 0.822), Optimism (α = 0.838), Connectedness (α = 0.846), and the strongest one was Happiness (α = 0.917).In the research sample, males accounted for more than half, reaching 55.40% (n = 2,721). The proportion of only children was less than half, at 37.70% (n = 1849). Over 60% of the students came from rural areas, accounting for 60.30% (n = 2,963) of the total. Nearly half of the students were first-year students, accounting for 48.80% (n = 2,398), while students in the third year or higher accounted for less than one-fifth, at 20.90% (n = 1,024). Only 8.20% (n = 404) of students received first-class assistance, while more than 60%, specifically 66.80% (n = 3,281), did not receive any financial assistance at all. Nearly half of the students were from lower-income families, representing 47.60% (n = 2,338) (see Figure 1).The study found significant differences between males and females, with males (3.32 ± 0.76) scoring significantly lower than females (3.47 ± 0.70) on the EPOCH total score. Only children (3.45 ± 0.76) had significantly higher EPOCH total score compared to non-only children (3.35 ± 0.73), and this trend was consistent across all five dimensions. Additionally, urban students (3.47 ± 0.74) scored significantly higher than rural students (3.33 ± 0.73) on the overall EPOCH dimension.First-year students had the highest EPOCH total score (3.50 ± 0.73) compared to other academic years. Students receiving higher levels of financial assistance exhibited poorer performance on various psychological indicators, although not all differences were statistically significant. Those receiving financial assistance had significantly lower scores in Happiness (3.29 ± 0.95) and overall EPOCH total score (3.29 ± 0.70) compared to students without financial assistance. Students from lower-income families had significantly lower scores in overall EPOCH total score (3.29 ± 0.76) compared to other groups (see Table 1).Family economic status was measured using the financial assistance category, as it reflects institutional assessments of students' financial circumstances based on standardized criteria. This approach avoided multicollinearity with domestic average income, ensuring model clarity and stability in the regression analysis.The results of the multiple regression analysis identified several significant predictors of psychological well-being. Domestic average income was not entered into the model due to multicollinearity with financial assistance. Only child status was positively associated with higher scores in the Connectedness dimension (B = 0.10, 95% CI [0.05, 0.15], p < 0.001). Additionally, being a first-year student was positively correlated with higher levels of psychological well-being (B = 0.10, 95% CI [0.11, 0.21], p < 0.001). Conversely, males were found to have lower levels of psychological well-being (B = -0.14, 95% CI [-0.18, -0.10], p < 0.001). Similarly, students from rural areas (B = -0.09, 95% CI [-0.13, -0.04], p < 0.001) and students receiving first-class financial assistance (B = -0.08, 95% CI [-0.16, -0.01], p < 0.01) also demonstrated lower levels of psychological well-being (see Table 2).In this study, we explored the psychological well-being of Chinese university students by analyzing the correlation between the EPOCH Measure of Adolescent Well-being and their demographic characteristics. We found that being female, an only child, an urban student, and in the first grade predicted higher overall well-being among university students.The results indicate that male students had significantly lower total EPOCH which to previous research that in China reported higher psychological well-being than (Chen et al., and et al., and 2022). Western and Eastern have that a cultural in as the of social and while are as and aspect of Chinese societal values, parental that male students be and significant and their despite as as et al., et al., This their ability to and which further impact their scores in terms of psychological well-being. Ryff and and and et al., found that score higher than in positive with across both Eastern and Western cultures. also to report and with 2022), report higher and are to and often vulnerable et al., and and 2023). These to higher scores in Connectedness and Optimism among research indicates that students on average experience higher levels of academic stress et al., and 2022), it also that they are at than males and et al., 2022), which is consistent with the of this were more to et al., were more to and et al., indicates a positive between social support and mental health et al., et al., 2023). This have to students exhibited higher scores in Connectedness, Optimism, and in higher EPOCH total research on gender differences in Engagement has studies suggest academic Engagement et al., varying by of study and males more in Engagement levels and or no consistent gender (Zhao et al., higher Engagement, while EPOCH research higher male Engagement during adolescence (Kern et al., These from varying and of Engagement and and In our study, no significant gender differences in Engagement were its as a psychological research is needed to explore these research no significant in Perseverance, aligning with previous and to Perseverance through This suggests gender differences be by the of Perseverance is more to internal than gender (Zeng and Kern, 2019). As Perseverance is closely to Engagement and which in both this the of significant Thus, and Perseverance levels when internal and This indicates that variations in well-being scores be by and and understanding these differences can interventions and results also found that only children reported higher scores across all with a significantly higher total EPOCH score. The of the one-child policy most Chinese families to in their only child, particularly in their education and Only children receive high levels of parental and family resources, with more and which enhances their et al., et al., their sense of well-being. Research by and suggests that only children be as they and psychological and study found that urban students scored significantly higher on psychological well-being compared to rural there is of significant and in rural-urban differences in well-being et al., and et al., studies have that urban populations generally report higher well-being due to factors like economic and higher living et al., and et al., et al., et al., 2020). and further supports this, urban students have mental health compared to rural who often and face from limited social opportunities and China, rural students face unique including family economic and limited parental support due to education levels and insufficient (Chen et al., et al., et al., 2024). These with educational resources and social their academic and psychological development (Li and et al., et al., et al., The transition to urban universities these a cultural as rural students with anxiety, and of constraints further in social and opportunities 2017). by urban rural students are of their social and economic and These factors to the lower well-being reported by rural students compared to their urban on the findings, universities in China interventions such as providing targeted mental health support and financial aid to rural students, with cultural and social integration opportunities to the studies have identified that the significant differences are to the effects of social and and et al., cultural differences (Suh and and psychological stress et al., improve the mental health of rural students, it is to from the educational and various societal et al., study that first-year students reported the highest level of psychological well-being, while students exhibited the This aligns with previous research that first-year students from institutional social and the of into university to their well-being and students face unique and significant challenges that to their well-being. et al. among due to increased and social with institutional This transition by and is a it a highlighting their and purpose, by academic and the need to a and studies support our and suggest that among students, a in due to first-year to lower happiness, while higher stress is to increased time management and less social support and et al., and and et al., 2019). These highlight the need for interventions to address the and challenges by students, their well-being and through receiving higher levels of financial assistance worse on psychological indicators, particularly receiving financial assistance. This suggest that while financial aid economic it not be to for all psychological among financial assistance indicate a lower socioeconomic that higher socioeconomic status was associated with well-being et al., 2020). research into how financial assistance can be more in fostering psychological development among students and how potential effects be these factors to the development of targeted and interventions to support the psychological well-being of Chinese university these predictors have been identified in previous studies, our research a comprehensive analysis a specific context, highlighting their and the need for tailored gender psychological well-being can address societal on male students' between parents and universities can non-only leveraging family resources to our study underscores the of the by increased in rural educational resources and mental health We suggest such as and mental health to support rural et al. in we stress management and academic counseling to academic stress for students, which is a unique to We the of this study, including its on a university and the of convenience which the generalizability of the research address these by data from multiple more diverse and and sampling approaches will ensure and provide a more comprehensive understanding of psychological well-being among university students in China.