Relationship Satisfaction, Emotion-Regulation Difficulties, Psychological Distress, and Help-Seeking Attitudes among Higher-Education Students
Abstract: Relationship quality, emotion regulation, psychological distress, and attitudes toward professional help are usually studied separately. This study examined all four together in a sample of 276 higher-education students aged 18-27 years (M = 21.21, SD = 2.01). A quantitative, cross-sectional correlational survey design was used. Data were collected online through convenience sampling using the Relationship Assessment Scale (RAS), a 19-item Difficulties in Emotion Regulation study score (DERS), the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21), and the Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help-Short Form (ATSPPH-SF). Descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, Pearson correlation, hierarchical regression with robust standard errors, and a bootstrapped indirect-effect analysis were used. Emotion-regulation difficulties were positively related to distress (r = .439), while relationship satisfaction was negatively related to both regulation difficulties (r = -.318) and distress (r = -.303). Distress was positively related to favourable help-seeking attitudes (r = .331). Relationship satisfaction and regulation difficulties explained 22.6% additional variance in distress beyond demographics (β = -.183 and .387). In the help-seeking model, distress (β = .537), regulation difficulties (β = -.315), and relationship satisfaction (β = .209) were independently significant. Relationship satisfaction had a negative indirect association with help-seeking attitudes through distress (ab = -.080, 95% CI [-.117, -.049]) alongside a positive direct association, a competitive mediation pattern. Because the study was cross-sectional, these findings represent associations and do not establish causality.
Keywords: relationship satisfaction; emotion regulation; psychological distress; help-seeking attitudes; university students; India
How to Cite?: Rakesh Kuriakose, "Relationship Satisfaction, Emotion-Regulation Difficulties, Psychological Distress, and Help-Seeking Attitudes among Higher-Education Students", Volume 15 Issue 10, October 2026, International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), Pages: 757-762, https://www.ijsr.net/getabstract.php?paperid=SR261009073035, DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.21275/SR261009073035