Resilience and psychological distress in the transition to university: the mediating role of emotion regulation

Young adults face numerous challenges during their first year of university, which is considered by various researchers to be a time of potential threat and acute stress. These challenges were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in disruption of old learning and social structures that make it all the more difficult to adapt. The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between resilience, emotion regulation, and psychological distress during the transition to university. A sample of 417 students (250 females, 60%) aged 18to 33 years (M age = 19.87, SD age = 1.47) was recruited at an Italian university using a random sampling method. Paper questionnaires were completed in classrooms. Resilience was assessed with the Resilience Scale, emotion regulation with the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale-18, and psychological distress with the Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scales-21. Results showed that (a) resilience was negatively correlated with difficulties in emotion regulation, depression, anxiety, and stress; (b) difficulties in emotion regulation were positively correlated with depression, anxiety, and stress; and (c) difficulties in emotion regulation significantly mediated the relationship between resilience and psychological distress. These findings shed light on the relationship between resilience and difficulties in emotion regulation during university transfer and call on higher education institutions to take steps to promote successful emotion regulation in first-year students to facilitate a positive transition to university.