Increased Resilience Serves as a Protective Factor Against Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Among Hispanic College Students During COVID-19

College students are a population negatively affected by COVID-19. The stress associated with the pandemic added to the preexisting symptoms of depression and anxiety common among college students. However, there are several factors, such as basic psychological needs and resilience, that have the potential to lessen the burden of COVID-19 and its potential mental health consequences. The present study seeks to assess the relationships between basic psychological need satisfaction and resilience with symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress related to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hispanic college students (n = 185, 76.8% female, M-age = 21.51, SD = 4.69) completed a series of questionnaires that assessed stress related to COVID-19, depression, anxiety, basic psychological need satisfaction, and resilience. Overall, model fit indices indicated that the data did not support the model, chi(2)(43) = 555.98, p < .001, comparative fit index = .47, root-mean-square error of approximation = .25, standardized root-mean-square residual = .22. However, resilience scores were negatively associated with competency frustration (beta = -0.25, p < .001), depression (beta = -1.95, p = .001), anxiety (beta = -1.23, p = .008), and stress subscale scores (beta = -1.09, p = .026). The results of the present study suggest that among Hispanic college students, resilience may serve as a protective factor against symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress associated with public health crises such as COVID. Brief resilience-based interventions in response to future public health crises may alleviate their negative mental health impact.