Positive Personality Features and Stress among First-year University Students: Implications for Psychological Distress, Functional Impairment, and Self-esteem

The transition to college has often been treated as a period that creates considerable stress in the lives of students and it has been found to increase their distress and lower their self-esteem. The purpose of the present study was to examine whether the positive personality features of optimism, hope, and happiness were associated with the levels of psychological distress (i.e., perceived stress, depressive symptoms, and anxiety), functional impairment, and self-esteem reported by 217 freshman university students in Israel during the course of their first semester. A three-wave longitudinal study was used to examine whether positive personality features measured during the first week of the semester (Time-1) were associated with subsequent assessments of psychological distress, functional impairment, and self-esteem that took place during the third (Time-2) and fifteenth weeks (Time-3) of the semester. Results indicated a significant increase in distress symptoms and functional impairment during the course of the semester. Further, positive personality features at Time-1 were associated with levels of psychological distress, functional impairment, and self-esteem at Time-3 and these connections were mediated by Time-2 assessments. Moreover, results indicated that psychological distress at Time-2 was associated with greater distress, more functional impairment, and lower self-esteem at Time-3. Discussion will focus on the extent to which positive personality features offer protection from the deleterious consequences of stress and the possibility that psychological distress deteriorates personal resources.