Manifestations of psychological distress in students from different social groups at the University of São Paulo

Abstract

Objective: To analyze the distribution of manifestations of psychological distress in different social groups of undergraduates from health courses at the University of São Paulo. Method: A cross-sectional study was carried out with undergraduates from 11 health courses at the University of São Paulo. The non-probabilistic sample consisted of 108 students. Data was collected using an online form and analyzed using the SPSS 20.04 and STATA 17 statistical packages. The students were classified into three social groups using the Social Reproduction Index. Results: 188 students took part in the study, 77.4% female; 64.7% white; 69.7% lived in the city of São Paulo and only 4.8% of these lived in student housing. As for the Social Group (SG), 50.5% were classified as SGI, 26.1% as SGII and 23.4% as SGIII/GSIV. Most of the university respondents (77.7%) reported manifestations of psychological distress. The GSI students expressed a lower percentage of manifestations of psychological distress (62.1%) when compared to the other groups. Conclusion: there was a higher prevalence of psychological distress among undergraduates in the GSIII/GSIV groups. The study highlights the importance of implementing policies to deal with psychological distress among university students.