Happiness, perceived stress, psychological well-being, and health behaviors of Thai university students: preliminary results from a multinational study on well-being

• Published in: Journal of American college health Vol. 69; no. 2; pp. 176 - 184
• Main Authors: Calderon, Raul, Pupanead, Suporntip, Prachakul, Wimonmas, Kim, GunDo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Taylor & Francis 17-02-2021; Taylor & Francis Inc
• Subjects: Alcohol use; Body Composition; Body Height; Body Weight; Chi-square test; College Students; Colleges & universities; Cultural Differences; Depression (Psychology); Diet; Drinking; Eating Habits; Foreign Countries; Gender Differences; Happiness; Health Behavior; Health Behaviors; Health risks; Interpersonal Relationship; Mental depression; Mental Health; Perceived Stress; Personal Autonomy; Physical Activity Level; Psychological Patterns; Psychological Well-being; Sleep; Sleep disorders; Smoking; Stress; Stress Variables; Thailand; Tobacco; University Students; Well Being; Thailand; United States; United Kingdom; Happiness; University Students; Perceived Stress; Health Behaviors; Psychological Well-being; Thailand
• ISSN: 0744-8481; 1940-3208
• DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2019.1657871

Objective: Describe and compare levels of happiness, psychological well-being, perceived stress, and health behaviors of university students.
Participants: Thai university students were selected (N = 478) during November 2016 using random cluster sampling.
Methods: A health and well-being questionnaire was constructed, translated from English to Thai, back-translated, and pilot tested. Descriptive and chi-square statistics were calculated for study variables.
Results: Thai male students had lower happiness and psychological well-being than Thai female students. Overall, Thai students had lower happiness and higher perceived stress than US/UK samples. Thai male students reported greater alcohol and tobacco use than Thai female students. Overall, Thai students reported inadequate diet (57%), poor sleep quantity/quality (67%) and depressive symptoms (40%).
Conclusions: These preliminary results identify specific areas of concern in the health and well-being of Thai university students. Further analyses are needed to shed light on the factors contributing to these increased health risks.