Relationship between resilience, social support and psychological well-being in nursing students

Background: Nursing students face significant academic stress, often surpassing that of other disciplines, due to exposure to diverse clinical settings and challenging patient conditions. This stress can lead to psychological issues like anxiety and depression, impacting their well-being. Aim and Methods: This study aimed to assess resilience and social support levels among 160 Generic BS Nursing students in five Public and Private nursing education institutions of Lahore, Pakistan and explore their relationship with psychological well-being by using a cross-sectional correlational study. A p-value of 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Results showed 47.5% of participants were aged 17–21, and 52.55% were older than 22. Most (88.8%) were female. Resilience scores were low-to-moderate (mean: 66.50 ± 14.7), psychological well-being was moderate (mean: 56.35 ± 18.98) and social support was low (mean: 5.07 ± 1.21). Notably, no significant differences were found between third and fourth-year students. Conclusion: This study highlighted the positive relationship between resilience, social support and psychological well-being among nursing students. Resilience plays a vital role in mitigating stress’s adverse effects, and strong support from family and friends contributes to positive psychological health.