The influence of family functionality and social reward valuation on self-management of mental health problems among public and private university students: A correlational study

Introduction: Mental health is becoming common among young people especially as they traverse the childhood age into adulthood. Some factors responsible for this include changes in environment and increased stressful circumstances like the demands of university education. Objectives: This study employed a comparative analysis of the family functionality, social reward valuation and self-management of mental health disorder among public and private university students in south western Nigeria. Methodology: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study among 469 public and private university students in south western Nigeria. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select the participants for the study through a self-administered questionnaire. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Smithklein’s APGAR’s scoring system and the social reward were instruments used in the study. Results: Family functionality associated significantly (13.215, p<0.001) with students from private university. Passivity was the only social reward valuation that was significant among the students studied (t=3.218, p<0.001). Private university students found coping with school work, home chores and getting along with other people extremely difficult (20.972, p<0.001). Association between socio-demographic features, family functionality, social reward valuation and self-management of mental health problems for students studied were not significant >0.05). Conclusion: Coping with school work and getting along with other people as a mental health problem was more pronounced among students of private university. Students from private university revealed higher passivity social valuation.