Abstract

SILVA DE SOUZA, MAYRA; DAHER BAPTISTA, ADRIANA SAID  and  NUNES BAPTISTA, MAKILIM. RELATION BETWEEN FAMILY SUPPORT, MENTAL HEALTH AND RISK BEHAVIOR IN UNDERGRADUATES STUDENTS. Act.Colom.Psicol. [online]. 2010, vol.13, n.1, pp.143-154. ISSN 0123-9155.

This study aimed at assessing the relation between family support, mental health and risk behavior. 776 undergraduate students participated in this study, selected from a total of 1775. Among these, 388(50%) were men and 388 (50%) were women, with a mean age of 21.53 and standard deviation of 2.38 years. The Perception of Family Support Inventory, the Self Reporting Questionnaire, and a Student´s Behavior Identification Questionnaire were the instruments used. Correlations between scores of the three instruments were found, thus showing the link between these three variables. Regression analysis using the stepwise model verified that mental health, risk behaviors of self-inflicted violence, sexual violence and a few activities related to leisure time predicted the dependent variable of total Family Support, where mental health was the predominant factor. In secondary analysis, differences between genders regarding mental health were found, showing that women were the most affected and men had a higher frequency of risk behaviors. Studying these constructs is important for generating knowledge about risk and protective factors in mental health and constitutes a starting point for the creation of prevention and intervention programs.

Keywords : family; mental health; risk behavior.

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