How Challenge Stress Affects Mental Health among College Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Moderating Role of Self-Efficacy

While a plethora of studies has been conducted to examine stress and its impact on mental health in western countries,research is scarce investigating the relationship between student challenge stress and health illness in the context of Chinese colleges.No studies examined the moderating effect of self-efficacy on the relationship between challenge stress and health illness.This study attempted to investigate the relationships between these three variables among Chinese college students.Especially,this study focused on examining whether self-efficacy moderated the effect of perceived challenge stress on students’mental health.Also,the differences were tested between male and female students in terms of these three variables.A sample of 578 Chinese college students was recruited over an approximately 12-week period from 7 Chinese universities.An online survey link was dis-tributed through WeChat.The SPSS version 26 software was used to analyze the data.Results showed that there is no significant difference between genders in terms of perceived challenge stress,self-efficacy,and students’mental health.In addition,challenge stress was positively related to the students’mental health(β=0.35,p<0.01)while there was a negative association between self-efficacy and mental health(β=-0.41,p<0.01).Furthermore,self-efficacy plays a moderating role in the relationship between challenge stress and mental health(β=-0.11,p=0.02).Students with low self-efficacy tend to experience more mental health issues.It is suggested that Chinese colleges and universities pay more attention to students with low self-efficacy,either through faculty/staff interven-tions or peer counseling.Professors consider reducing students’academic stress to improve their mental health.

Future challenges in understanding ROS in plant responses to abiotic stress

Plants must cope with a variety of environmental stresses. Most types of abiotic stresses, such as drought, salinity, flooding, heat and cold stress, disrupt the metabolic balance of cells, resulting in the enhanced production of reactive oxygen species （ROS）. While being well-known as a toxic by-product, recent studies about ROS focus on their roles as signaling molecules.

How do work-family balance practices affect work-family conflict？ The differential roles of work stress

This paper investigates the relationship between employees＇ perception of work-family balance practices and work-family conflicts. It examines the role of challenge stress and hindrance stress as moderators. Based on survey data collected from 841 civil servants in Beijing, we found that perceived work-family balance practices may reduce work-family conflict, while challenge and hindrance work stresses were positively related to work-family conflict. In addition, challenge and hindrance stresses differentially moderated the relationship between perceived work-family practices and work-family conflict. When challenge stress is high then workffamily balance practices will reduce work-family conflict. However, under high hindrance stress, work-family balance practices will serve to reduce work-family conflict less. More detailed analysis of the configurational dimensions of work-family balance practices （work flexibility, and employee and family wellness care） are also tested. This study provides additional insight into the management of work-family interfaces and offers ideas for future research.