Longitudinal Association Between School Climate and Psychological Flexibility and Mental Health: A Random Intercept Cross Lagged Panel Model

Previous research found the effect of school climate on students' psychological distress. No longitudinal studies examined the effect of school climate on college students' psychological flexibility and the possible mediating role of psychological flexibility between school climate and psychological distress. These were the primary purpose of the present study. Medical college students were recruited starting in September 2020; assessments were conducted at five points, with intervals of two months between each assessment. Self-reported questionnaires were completed by 210 college students (33.3% male and 66.7% female), with an average age of 20.62. The Perceived School Climate scale, Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II, and Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) were used to assess participants' perceived school climate, psychological flexibility, and mental health (i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress) respectively. The temporal directional relationship between study variables was analyzed using the random intercept cross-lagged panel model. There was a unidirectional positive effect from perceived school climate to psychological flexibility, and a unidirectional negative effect from perceived school climate to anxiety and depression. There was no directional effect between psychological flexibility and mental health at the within-person level, but at the between-person level, they were strongly associated. Furthermore, psychological flexibility did not mediate the relationship between perceived school climate and mental health. This study supported the bio-ecological theory and highlighted the importance of fostering a positive school climate to improve college students' psychological flexibility and decrease their depression and anxiety.