Assessment of Mental Health of University Students with GHQ-12

Aims: The aim of this study was to assess the mental health status of university students and the factors affecting their mental health.Materials and Methods: The universe of the study consisted of a total of 8407 students enrolled as first-or third-year students of a university. The study sample was determined by using the “sampling size where the population in universe is known” formula. The study questionnaire was designed to include questions regarding some sociodemographic characteristics and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)-12. Data were analyzed by SPSS 15.0, and binary logistic regression forward selection method was used to determine the variables that could affect GHQ-12 scores.Results: The study population included a total of 3501 students (males, 36.9%). The majority of the students were 21 years and their mean age was 21.3±2.0 years. “Academic achievement” and “presence of a negative event in the last year” were present in all models of analysis.Conclusions: These findings indicate the strong impact of these two factors on the mental health of students.The findings of our study can not be generalized for all university students; however, the study variables canguide other researchers in their studies on the mental health status of students.