RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ANXIETY, DEPRESSION AND AGGRESSION AMONG FEMALE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Abstract

The present study was carried out to examine levels of anxiety, depression and aggression among female university students in Pakistan. Additionally, it was hypothesized that anxiety and depression would significantly predict aggression among study participants. A total of 478 participants completed a cross sectional survey measuring anxiety, depression and aggression using standardized measures i.e., GAD 7, PHQ 9 and Buss & Perry Aggression Questionnaires respectively. Among the 478 female undergraduate students who took part in the current study, 33.5% were identified with clinically significant levels of depression, and 28.5% with clinically noteworthy levels of anxiety. Regarding aggression, the survey revealed that 38.3% reported high levels of physical aggression, 46.7% reported high levels of verbal aggression, 48.3% expressed high levels of anger, and 48.5% exhibited high levels of hostility. Significant variations were noted between groups categorized by a) presence or absence of depression and b) presence or absence of anxiety in terms of aggression. The groups displaying clinical symptoms demonstrated higher average scores across all aggression domains in the questionnaire. Moreover, there were evident positive correlations observed between anxiety, depression, and all categories of aggression. These findings highlight need for an early intervention to address mental health outcomes associated with aggression in educational and clinical settings.