Journal Screenshot

International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences

Open Access Journal

ISSN: 2222-6990

The Prevalence of Mental Health among Malaysian University Students

Suhaili Arifin, Siti Salina Abdullah, Nor Ezdianie Omar, Nurshuhada Mohamed, Yusni Mohamad Yusop, Noor Muthmainnah Hamdul Hadi

http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v13-i12/19796

Open access

The mental health among university students should be given close, and more proper, attention due to the fact that they are the national asset in years to come. Life in the university can be pressurizing to the students as they have to grapple with the process of adaptation, family separation, relationship issues, financial issues, health issues and many others. Nonetheless, the university is not the place to solve a student’s personal problems. Instead, they have to deal with the problems themselves using the resources and facilities that have been provided to them. Those students who fail to manage these challenges are highly exposed to mental health problems and further lead to the academic underperformance. Hence, mental health issues are crucial to be addressed to improve their wellbeing and success. Therefore, this study is conducted to identify the mental health level of the Malaysian students in the university. A total of n=810 students was chosen using a simple random sampling technique. This study employs the Mental Health Inventory (MHI) to collect the data. The result indicates that more than half respondents had moderate to high level of psychological distress =68.9%, anxiety =72.7%, and depression =60.6%. Meanwhile for loss of behavioral or emotional control=42.8% were at moderate to high level. In conclusion, even so the level of mental health among university students needs to be emphasized as the moderate level for this overall psychological distress can change to a higher level. Based on the findings, several suggestions have also been discussed.

Archuleta, K. L., Dale, A., & Spann, S. M. (2013). College students and financial distress: Exploring debt, financial satisfaction, and financial anxiety. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 24, 50-62.
Beiter, R., Nash, R., McCrady, M., Rhoades, D., Linscomb, M., Clarahan, M., & Sammut, Stephen. (2014). The prevalence and correlates of depression, anxiety, and stress in a sample of college students. Journal of Affective Disorder, 173, 90-96, 10.1016/j.jad.2014.10.054.
Bore, M., Kelly, B., & Nair, B. (2016) Potential predictors of psychological distress and well-being in medical students: A cross-sectional pilot study. Adv Med Educ Pract., 2(7),125-35. doi: 10.2147/AMEP.S96802.
Clinciu, A. I. (2013). Adaptation and stress for the first year university students. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 78, 718-722.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.04.382.
Damota, M. D., Mekuria, E. G., & Bitew, A. F. (2019). The prevalence and correlates of psychological distress among undergraduate students of Madda Walabu University, Ethiopia. International Journal for Research in Social Science and Humanities, 5(8), 01–18. https://doi.org/10.53555/ssh.v5i8.1029.
Eleventh Malaysia Plan. (2015). Eleventh Malaysia Plan 2016-2020. Anchoring growth on people. Retrieved from
https://www.pmo.gov.my/dokumenattached/speech/files/RMK11_Speech.pdf
Hassan, N. A., Abdul Majeed, H., Tajuddin, M. J., Abdullah, N. H., and Ahmad, R. (2022) Investigating mental health among Malaysian university students during Covid-19 pandemic, Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 7(1), 251 - 260. doi: 10.47405/mjssh.v7i1.1224
Kamaludin, K., Chinna, K., Sundarasen, S., Khoshaim, H. B., Nurunnabi, M., Baloch, G. M., Sukayt, A., & Hossain, S. (2020). Coping with COVID-19 and movement control order (MCO): Experiences of university students in Malaysia. Heliyon, 6(11), 1- 7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e05339.
Majid, M. K. (1993). Kaedah penyelidikan pendidikan. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.
National Health and Morbidity Survey. (2019). Non-communicable diseases, healthcare demand, and health literacy. Retrieved from https://iptk.moh.gov.my/images/technical_report/2020/4_Infographic_Booklet_NHMS_2019_-_English.pdf
National Health and Morbidity Survey, (2015). Non-communicable diseases, risks factors, & other health problems, volume II. Retrieved from
https://www.moh.gov.my/moh/resources/nhmsreport2015vol2.pdf
Husin, N., Jazman, M. A. M., Hamda, B. H., Norrashid, N. S. (2022). The determinants of mental health state among university students in Malaysia. Selangor Business Review, 7(1), 30-43.
Norazila, M., Noridayu, I., Nur Atiqah, A., Zaleha, Y., & Jamsari, A. (2018). Hubungan antara beban kerja, faktor peribadi dan E-pembelajaran terhadap tahap tekanan di kalangan gen-Y. Jurnal Personalia Pelajar, 21(2), 23-35.
Pandya, A., & Lodha, P. (2021). Mental health of college students amidst covid-19: Implications for reopening of colleges and universities. Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 43(3), 274–275.
Pheng, T. L., Wan Jaafar, W. M., & Nor, M. N. (2019). Stigma and attitudes toward seeking counseling among undergraduate students. Journal GJAT, Special Issue, 93-105.
Saharudin, N. W. N., Firdus, F. M., Khair, S. N. N., Abdullah, T. H. F., & Harun, S. F. (2020). Determinant factor of anxiety disorders among bachelor degree students, Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 17(3), 14-19.
Shahira, M. N., Hanisshya, H., Lukman, Z. M., Normala, R., Azlini, C., & Kamal, M. Y. (2018). Psychological well-being among university students in Malaysia. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 2, 133-137.
Shamsuddin, K., Fadzil, F., Ismail, W. S. W., Shah, S. A., Omar, K., Muhammad, N. A., Jaffar, A., Ismail, A., & Mahadevan, R. (2013). Correlates of depression, anxiety and stress among Malaysian university students. Asian Journal of Psychiatry, 6(4), 318–323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajp.2013.01.014.
Sidek, M. N. (2009). Reka bentuk penyelidikan. Falsafah, teori dan praktis. Serdang. Universiti Putra Malaysia.
Farhan, M. S. S., l Arifain, K. S. M., & Yusof, F. (2021). Hubungan antara sokongan sosial dan kesihatan mental dalam kalangan pelajar di Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Malaysian Journal of Social Science, 6 (1), 21-31.
Stamp, E., Crust, L., Swann, C., Perry, J., Clough, P., & Marchant, D. (2015). Relationships between mental toughness and psychological wellbeing in undergraduate students. Personality and Individual Differences, 75, 170-174.
Veit, C. T., and Ware, J. E. (1983) The structure of psychological distress and well-being in general populations. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 51, 730-742.
Wan Marzuki, W. J. (2016). Isu profesionalisme kaunselor. In Wan Marzuki, W. J., Amir, A., Salleh, A. Ruhani, M.M. Kompetensi kaunselor professional, 15-25. Putrajaya, Selangor: Lembaga Kaunselor, Malaysia.
World Health Organization. (?2004)?. The World health report 2004: Changing history. World Health Organization. Retrieved from https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/42891

N/A