Dr.Hab., Professor A.V. Eganov¹
Dr.Biol., Professor Y.N. Romanov¹
PhD, Associate Professor L.A. Romanova¹
PhD, Associate Professor S.A. Nikiforova^1
1South Ural State University (National Research University), Chelyabinsk 

Background. The ongoing social and economic transformations in the country have triggered growing public disappointment in the economic reforms, sagging industrial activity, falling household incomes and uncertainty in the future that are reported among the key stressors by different public strata with their negative impacts on the people’s mental health demonstrated by the growing mental disorders. On the whole, mental health is reported to deteriorate in many East European countries and Russia on the whole with the young people being most vulnerable to this negative trend [1-3, 7].

Mental health comprises an integral part of general health. Only a mentally healthy student with perfect spiritual balance can easily adapt to the academic education, work and sport environments. Individual progress may be rated by the relevant health rates in different activity domains including intellectual, business, research and cultural ones [4-6]. The study was designed to profile mental health by a variety of its components as presented in Table 1 herein. Special studies are still needed, however, to analyse the componential mental health structure in some student groups.

Objective of the study was to analyse a factor mental health structure in female students.

Methods and structure of the study. The study was performed in 2013-2017 with 94 full-time (20.3 years old on average) female students being subject to the study including a group of students trained under the standard academic physical education curriculum (n=43); and a sporting group engaged in different academic sports including track and field sports, volleyball, tourism, skating, skiing, equestrian sport, body shaping, swimming, judo and mountaineering (n=51) with the sport records of 5 to 10 years. The subjects’ mental health was rated by a special survey test including 47 standard statements [7]. The primary data were analysed using a factor analysis and method of key components with the orthogonal axes rotated by Varimax test.

Study results and discussion. The factor analysis of the students’ mental health components resulted in the structure (see Table 1) of 8 orthogonal factors with the relatively modest (52.96%) total variance (TV) of the sample and modest contributions of every factor varying within the range of 4.5% to 12.4%.

Factor 1 with variance of 12.4% of the total variance includes - with the highest correlations and positive value – rates number 5, 19, 22, 23, 24, 24, 26, 30, 34, 35, 37, 38, 40, 45 and 47 pivotal for the subjects’ mental health structure. Correlation of the rates with the opposite signs in the factor mean that the higher is the value of some rate the lower is the influence of another rate on it. Negative rate 5 (anxiety), for instance, means that high anxiety is of negative effect on the mental health of the sample.

Since integral rate 47 (mental health rate) of the relevant factor includes the above rates with a fairly high correlation (0.60), Factor 1 is referred to herein as “Mental Health Rate”.

Factor 2 with variance of 7.8% of the total variance includes – with the highest factor ratios – rates number 39, 45, 46 and 47 that refer to the emotional and volitional control. As required by the content, Factor 2 was entitled “Mental Condition Optimising Skill” as one of the key components of the student’s mental health structure.

Factor 3 contributes only 6.8% to the total variance and includes – with the highest absolute factor ratios – rates number 21, 27, 28, 32, 34, 36, 40 and 41 that mostly refer to the social communication of positive effect on the students’ mental health. Factor 3 was entitled “Positive Emotional Field Creation and Maintenance Skills”, with the social environment control viewed as one of the key components of the mental health structure

Factor 4 contributes 6.3% to the total variance and includes – with the highest correlations and negative sign – rates number 1, 2, 3, 5 and 9 characteristic of the mental condition; and with the positive rates number 31, 33, 36 and 37 corresponding to the positive mental health components including adequate emotional response to stressors, overall spiritual comfort and self-confidence.

Table 1. Students’ mental health components generated by the factor analysis

Note: Correlation ratios multiplied by 100, with the key correlation ratios in the factor bolded, n=94.

Factor 5 contributes 5.2% to the TV and includes – with the highest correlations – rates number 20 and и 43 characteristic of practical activity, determination in studies, sports and work; and negative rate 17. Content of the factor implies that a sport record is of positive effect on the student activity expressed in practical activity, determination in studies, sports and work. Negative rate 17 means that more time is required for rest and rehabilitation depending on the sport record. Content of the factor gives the reasons to entitle it “Practical Activity Component of Mental Health”.

Factor 6 contributes 5.1% to the TV and includes – with the negative correlations – rates number 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 18 characteristic of mental health and referring to the stressors that cause nervous tension, anger and malice; neurotic conditions, irritation, aggression and high mental tension. We have entitled this factor “Negative Emotions in Mental Health”.

Factor 7 contributes 4.9% to the TV and includes social group positioning characteristics and the relevant responses of the autonomic nervous system as follows: rates number 11, 14, 15 and 16 with negative correlations and rates number 40 and 42 with positive correlations. We have entitled this factor “Social Position of Influence on the Mental Health”.

Factor 8 with the minimal variance of 4.5% of the TV and the highest negative correlations includes rates number 4, 12 and 13 characteristic of tranquillity, social support and stress control by smoking and alcohol.

The study data and analyses gave the means to state that age is of low impact on the female students’ mental health. It is the sport record that was found to be of positive effect on some mental health rates (mostly the practical activity related ones) of the female students contributing to their determination in studies, sports and work.

Conclusion. The factor structure of the students’ mental health was found to include the following key rates: wellbeing, emotional status, stamina, mental capacity, self-confidence, mental functionality and balance, mental domain adaptability to social environments, harmony of personal qualities, overall status of mental domain and its performance.

References

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Corresponding author: eganov@bk.ru

Abstract

Poor mental health is known to be of high negative impact on the individual intellectual and physical resource, and this is the reason why due priority needs to be given to analyses of the students’ mental health. Subject to the study were 94 female students aged 20.3 years on average engaged in the academic physical education and sports under the traditional academic education curricula. The subjects’ mental health was analysed using a holistic approach and interpreted as composed of eight orthogonal components generated by factor analysis, with the total variance of the sample estimated at 52.96% with a relatively modest input of every factor varying from 12.4% to 4.5%. Most important of the subjects' mental health components are the following: wellbeing; emotional status; mental capacity; self-confidence; mental domain condition and functionality; social adaptability; and degree of harmony of individual mental qualities.