Maladaptive schemas, health anxiety and mental health of college students during the pandemic

Abstract

Objective: This study examined, through structural equation modeling, whether cognitive schemas influence health anxiety and whether it has an effect on mental health, particularly symptoms of anxiety and depression, in college students. Design: A study with a quantitative, ex post facto, non-experimental, explanatory level, and cross-sectional approach was carried out. Through a non-probabilistic sampling for convenience, 1004 undergraduate students from three universities were included. Results: It was possible to demonstrate, through a path analysis, that maladaptive schemes influence health anxiety and health anxiety affects the mental health of college students (CMIN/DF = 2.411; RMR = 0.036; GFI = 0.936; AGFI = 0.925; NFI = 0.918; CFI = 0.95; RMSEA = 0.038 [LO 90 = 0.036; HI 90 = 0.042]). The model showed that the insufficient self-control scheme has a strong effect on the fear of disease and fear of disease predicts the psychological symptoms of anxiety and depression. Conclusion: The model developed in the present study showed that health anxiety explains part of the psychological symptomatology in university students. Moreover, we were able to explain some of the health anxiety by appealing to two maladaptive schemes.