Testing the moderating role of in-person and virtual social interactions among university students on the relationship between loneliness and anxiety or depressive symptoms

Background: The transition to university can amplify students’ social isolation, leading to mental distress. In particular, loneliness could play a key role in the onset of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Different patterns of students’ social interactions, both in-person and online, may add complexity to the relationship between loneliness and mental health problems. Our study aimed to evaluatethe moderating role of both in-person and virtual social connectedness on the relationship between loneliness and anxiety or depressive symptoms. Method: Data were from the CAMPUS study (0058642/21; FHMS 20-21 157), a survey on university students’ mental health in Italy and the United Kingdom (UK). An ordered logistic regression was carried out to test the potential moderating effect of social media use and the frequency of in-person interactions on the relationship between loneliness (UCLA), anxiety (GAD-7), and depressive symptoms (PHQ-9). Results: A significant positive association between perceived loneliness and both anxiety (p<0.001) and depressive symptoms (p<0.001) was found. However, in-person interactions significantly moderated this relationship for both anxiety, in a bidirectional way depending on the level of loneliness (p<0.001), and depressive symptoms (coeff.=-0.25, 95%CI -0.45;-0.05, p=0.016). Furthermore, social media use significantly influenced the relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms (coeff.=0.21, 95%CI 0.12;0.31, p<0.001), but not the relationship between loneliness and anxiety symptoms (p=0.47). Conclusions: Along with the association between loneliness and anxiety or depressive symptoms, our findings highlight the key moderating role of both virtual and in-person social interactions, which may be targeted by tailored support, ultimately improving anxiety and depressive symptoms among university students.