Longitudinal trajectories of benefit finding and its associations with emotion regulation, social connectedness, depression, and anxiety among Chinese college students following the removal of COVID-19 restrictions. a multivariate latent growth curve analysis
6 affiliations
- 1Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, Dongfang Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine
- 2Department of Student Affairs, Northeast Agricultural University
- 3Graduate School, Wenzhou Medical University
- 4The First School of Clinical Medicine, Wenzhou Medical University
- 5Second Department of Encephalopathy, Dongfang Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine
- 6School of Laboratory Medicine and Life Science, Wenzhou Medical University
Abstract
Background: Benefit finding may be associated with better mental health after the pandemic, but its longitudinal trajectory and its associations with psychosocial resources and mental health symptoms during recovery remain unclear.
Objective: This study examined trajectories of benefit finding among Chinese college students from approximately 3 to 15 months after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. We also examined its associations with emotion regulation, social connectedness, depressive symptoms, and anxiety symptoms, together with indirect association patterns involving benefit finding.
Methods: A three-wave longitudinal study was conducted among 1,155 Chinese college students. Data were analyzed using parallel-process latent growth curve modeling.
Results: Social connectedness and benefit finding increased linearly over time, whereas depressive and anxiety symptoms decreased. Cognitive reappraisal was positively associated with the benefit finding intercept but negatively associated with its slope, whereas expressive suppression was not significantly associated with either growth factor. Social connectedness showed stronger associations with benefit finding trajectories than the emotion regulation variables. Benefit finding was negatively associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms at both the intercept and slope levels. Indirect association patterns through benefit finding were supported for social connectedness and both depressive and anxiety symptoms at the intercept and slope levels when inference was based on bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals.
Conclusions: Benefit finding increased during the post-pandemic recovery period and was associated with lower depressive and anxiety symptoms. Social connectedness showed relatively strong associations with benefit finding trajectories, while cognitive reappraisal was associated with higher initial benefit finding but a slower subsequent increase. The indirect association patterns linked social connectedness with both symptom domains through benefit finding at the intercept and slope levels. These findings highlight psychosocial resources that merit further study in campus mental health research, while the observational design does not establish causal direction or temporal precedence.
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BibTeX
@article{wang2026longitudinal,
title = {{Longitudinal trajectories of benefit finding and its associations with emotion regulation, social connectedness, depression, and anxiety among Chinese college students following the removal of COVID-19 restrictions. a multivariate latent growth curve analysis}},
author = {Wenbo Wang and Guangyu Wen and Deran Li and Xiaoxiao Liu and Rongjuan Guo and Dongfang Wu},
journal = {Frontiers in Psychiatry},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fpsyt.2026.1940327},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2026.1940327/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Longitudinal trajectories of benefit finding and its associations with emotion regulation, social connectedness, depression, and anxiety among Chinese college students following the removal of COVID-19 restrictions. a multivariate latent growth curve analysis
AU - Wenbo Wang
AU - Guangyu Wen
AU - Deran Li
AU - Xiaoxiao Liu
AU - Rongjuan Guo
AU - Dongfang Wu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/29
JO - Frontiers in Psychiatry
DO - 10.3389/fpsyt.2026.1940327
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2026.1940327/full
AB - Background: Benefit finding may be associated with better mental health after the pandemic, but its longitudinal trajectory and its associations with psychosocial resources and mental health symptoms during recovery remain unclear. Objective: This study examined trajectories of benefit finding among Chinese college students from approximately 3 to 15 months after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. We also examined its associations with emotion regulation, social connectedness, depressive symptoms, and anxiety symptoms, together with indirect association patterns involving benefit finding. Methods: A three-wave longitudinal study was conducted among 1,155 Chinese college students. Data were analyzed using parallel-process latent growth curve modeling. Results: Social connectedness and benefit finding increased linearly over time, whereas depressive and anxiety symptoms decreased. Cognitive reappraisal was positively associated with the benefit finding intercept but negatively associated with its slope, whereas expressive suppression was not significantly associated with either growth factor. Social connectedness showed stronger associations with benefit finding trajectories than the emotion regulation variables. Benefit finding was negatively associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms at both the intercept and slope levels. Indirect association patterns through benefit finding were supported for social connectedness and both depressive and anxiety symptoms at the intercept and slope levels when inference was based on bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals. Conclusions: Benefit finding increased during the post-pandemic recovery period and was associated with lower depressive and anxiety symptoms. Social connectedness showed relatively strong associations with benefit finding trajectories, while cognitive reappraisal was associated with higher initial benefit finding but a slower subsequent increase. The indirect association patterns linked social connectedness with both symptom domains through benefit finding at the intercept and slope levels. These findings highlight psychosocial resources that merit further study in campus mental health research, while the observational design does not establish causal direction or temporal precedence.
SN - 1664-0640
ER -