A collaborative study by researchers from NIMHANS, University of Melbourne, Australia, and several other Indian academic institutions has revealed a significant prevalence of depression and anxiety symptoms as well as suicidal thoughts and attempts among college students in India.
Published in the Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine this week, the cross-sectional observational study recruited 8,542 students, including over 4,800 female students, from 30 universities spanning 15 cities in nine States. Utilising a questionnaire that included the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) to measure depression and anxiety symptoms, the study also examined the prevalence of suicidal thoughts, attempts, non-suicidal self-injury, and other health and social factors.
