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Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 116 (2014) 163 – 165

5th World Conference Educational Sciences -WCES 2013

A Study of the Relation between Mental health and Academic

Performance of Students of the Islamic Azad University Ahvaz
Branch
Mehdi Bostani1* Amir Nadri 2, Azami Rezaee Nasab3
1. Department of physical Education ,Ahvaz branch, Islamic Azad University,Ahvaz, Iran
2. Department of physical Education ,Izeh branch, Islamic Azad University, Izeh, Iran
3. M.Sc of Educational Psychology, Allameh Tabataba'I University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The relation between mental health and Academic performance has been reported variously in different studies. The present
research aims to study the Relation between Mental health and Academic Performance in athletic and non-athletic Students of the
Islamic Azad University Ahvaz branch, Iran. For this purpose, 200 students Includes 100 athletic and 100 non-athletic were
selected via random cluster sampling method. In order to collect data, the Goldberg general health questionnaire (GHQ-28) was
used. The students’ total average score was used as an index of their Academic performance. Finally the data were analyzed
though using correlation coefficient and independent t-test at the level of confidence of 95%. The results showed that general
health and some of its components, such as depression and anxiety, had a significant relation with educational performance,
while no significant relation was observed between Academic performance and other components such as physical symptoms
and social performance disorders. According to the findings of this research, it can be concluded that the higher the mental health
of the students, the better their educational performance, although it seems that the students’ educational performance is also
affected by other factors and their interactional effects as well.
© 2013 The
© 2013 The Authors.
Authors.Published byElsevier
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access under CC BY-NC-ND license.
Selection
Selectionand peerpeer-review
and/or review underunder
the responsibility of Prof.
responsibility Dr. ServetWorld
of Academic BayramEducation and Research Center.
Keywords: mental health, Academic performance, depression, anxiety

1. Introduction

University years are exciting and challenging years for students; it is essential for the students to overcome these
challenges and stress-inducing factors in order to pave the way for their own educational achievement (Bahrami,
2007). Obviously, university students are one of the most sensitive strata of society, many of whom will become the
future’s managers and planners, and the mental health of the society is contingent upon their mental health. One of
the characteristics of a normal personality is having full mental health. Various definitions have so far been
proposed for “mental health”, all of which emphasizing the integrity of personality. Goldstein defines mental health
as the balance between organs and environment in the progress towards self-actualization. Chauhanss (1991)
considers mental health as a state of psychological maturity defined as the maximum effectiveness and satisfaction
obtained through individual and social opposition including positive feedbacks and feelings towards self and others.
Challenges of the university years can bring students sources of anxiety, hence endangering their health. A study
conducted by Yousofi and Amini showed that male and female students receive anxiety from different sources and
respond to it differently (Amini and et al, 2001). Anxiety, depression, physical problems, and lack of health in
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +989167017668; fax: +98 6114426228
E-mail address: bostanim@yahoo.com

1877-0428 © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license.
Selection and/or peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Education and Research Center.
doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.01.186
164 Mehdi Bostani et al. / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 116 (2014) 163 – 165

general, lead to a decline in learning. In a study carried out by Abbasabadi, a reverse, significant relation was
observed between hidden and obvious anxiety, on the one hand, and educational achievement, on the other
(Abbasabadi, 1998). Many researchers have reported significant correlations between mental health and educational
achievement (Muijs,1997). Lee asserts that factors such as students’ lack of familiarity with the university
environment upon their entrance, detachment from family, lack of interest in educational major, failure to get along
with others, insufficient economic/welfare amenities, etc. can bring about mental problems and, consequently, a
decline in students’ performance (Madadi, 2002). In his study, Asgari (2008) concluded that there is no significant
relation between mental health and academic performance both among male students and among female ones.
However, Sha`iri (2004) reported a significant relation between mental health and academic performance.
Therefore, conflicting results have been reported in various studies on the relation between mental health and
academic performance; the current research aims to examine the relation between these two factors among the
students of Islamic Azad university of Ahvaz branch, Iran.

2. Method

2.1. Participants

This research is a correlational study, the statistical population of which consists of the students of Islamic Azad
university of Ahvaz branch, Iran; the sample comprised of 200 hundred students, selected through random cluster
sampling. In order to examine their mental health, the general health questionnaire GHQ-28 was used; this
questionnaire contains 28 multiple-choice questions, classified into four areas of depression, anxiety, physical
symptoms, and disorder social performance, with a marking range of 0–3. The total sum of scores in this
questionnaire equals the student’s mental health total score. Each area contains 7 questions with a maximum score
of 28; hence the maximum of total score is 84. Higher scores indicate lower level of mental health (Goldenberg,
1997). The total reliability coefficient of this questionnaire was 0.96 and that of the subscales of depression, anxiety,
physical symptoms, and disorder in social performance were 0.94, 0.90, 0.89, and 0.78, respectively (Bahmani,
2006). Also, students’ academic performance was measured against their total average grade.

2.1.1. Measurements

At first, the researcher explains the objective of the study to the testees and then asks them to fill out the required
information (such as age, sex, year of university entrance, major, academic degree, and total grade-point average)
and then to complete the mental health questionnaire. The respondents were told that mentioning their names was
optional, and this enhanced both their sense of security and their truthfulness in answering the questions.

2.1.1.1. Procedure

Statistical analysis of data was carried out using SPSS-16 at the level of 95% and also using Pearson correlation
coefficient and independent t-test. Furthermore, in order to examine the relation between educational status and
variables of mental health, ‘multiple regression’ was applied.

3. Results

Statistical analysis showed that there was a significant relation between mental health and educational
performance, that is, the higher the students’ level of mental health, the better their educational performance.
Moreover, there was a significant relation between educational performance and certain components of mental
health, such as depression and anxiety; however, no significant relation was observed between educational
 Mehdi Bostani et al. / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 116 (2014) 163 – 165 165

performance and other components of mental health (physical symptoms and disorder in social performance). The
data related to these findings is presented in Table 1 below.

Table1. The statistical data related to mental health, its components, and educational performance

Average and standard

Variables Number t P Results
deviation

GPA 200 15.9±4.32 5.85 - -

Mental health 200 21.3±11.9 2.25 0.024 Sig

Physical symptoms 200 4.8±9.2 3.12 0.156 NS

Anxiety 200 5.2±3.5 2.70 0.040 Sig

Disorder in social
200 6.8±3.7 1.96 0.095 NS
performance
Depression 200 3.0±4.2 0.92 0.015 Sig

4. Discussion and Conclusion

In this research, significant relations were found between educational performance and mental health and some
of its components, such as depression and anxiety, while such relation was not observed between other components
(physical symptoms and disorder in social performance). It seems that students who have a better mental health
status, that is, those who obtained lower scores in the mental health questionnaire, have a better educational
performance as well. These finding were not in agreement with findings of the study done by Asgari (2008), while
they supported the findings of the research carried out by Sha`iri (2004) and others. This non-agreement can be
ascribed to the difference among testees in terms of age, sex, living environment, social/economic conditions, etc. It
seems that the students’ educational status is influenced by other factors as well. Depression and anxiety – which are
psychological disorders – affect mental health and cause a decline in educational performance. As a result, it is
recommended that educational centers apply recreational, counseling, and sports programs in order to enhance their
students’ mental health and hence their educational performance.

References

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