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Does going to university in a different country affect your mental health? A Japanese international university surveyed its students in 2018 and published a study the following year that was approved by several ethical and regulatory boards.

The study found that international students have a higher risk of mental health difficulties than the general population, and that social connectedness (belonging to a social group) and acculturative stress (stress associated with joining a new culture) are predictive of depression.

Explore the students data using PostgreSQL to find out if you would come to a similar conclusion for international students and see if the length of stay is a contributing factor.

Here is a data description of the columns you may find helpful.

Field NameDescription
inter_domTypes of students (international or domestic)
japanese_cateJapanese language proficiency
english_cateEnglish language proficiency
academicCurrent academic level (undergraduate or graduate)
ageCurrent age of student
stayCurrent length of stay in years
todepTotal score of depression (PHQ-9 test)
toscTotal score of social connectedness (SCS test)
toasTotal score of acculturative stress (ASISS test)

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df
variable
SELECT 
	stay, 
	COUNT(inter_dom) AS count_int, 
	ROUND(AVG(todep), 2) AS average_phq,
	ROUND(AVG(tosc), 2) AS average_scs,
	ROUND(AVG(toas), 2) AS average_as
FROM students
WHERE inter_dom = 'Inter'
GROUP BY stay
ORDER BY stay DESC;

The SQL query provided calculates the average scores for depression (PHQ-9), social connectedness (SCS), and acculturative stress (ASISS) for international students, grouped by their length of stay in years. Here's an interpretation of these averages and their potential link to the length of stay:

Potential Links with Length of Stay:

  • Decreasing PHQ-9 Scores: If the average PHQ-9 scores decrease with longer stays, it might suggest that students' mental health improves as they adapt to their new environment.
  • Increasing SCS Scores: An increase in SCS scores with longer stays could indicate that students develop stronger social networks and feel more connected over time.
  • Decreasing ASISS Scores: A decrease in ASISS scores with longer stays might suggest that students experience less stress related to cultural adaptation as they become more familiar with the local culture.