Social isolation and well-being among undergraduates in Saudi Arabia: implications for sustainable, inclusive, and vision 2030–aligned higher education

Social isolation and student well-being are emerging issues in higher education worldwide. Digital behavior, perceived social support, and Perceived Supportive Campus Environmental conditions significantly impact students’ psychological health and experiences. Undergraduates are becoming lonelier, experiencing mental health pressures, and becoming addicted to using smartphones. The present research aimed to assess levels of social isolation and loneliness, examine how smartphone dependency influences students’ mental health, and examine how perceived social support and a favorable campus environment mitigate the effects of isolation and enhance students’ well-being. A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted between September and October 2025 among 2,540 undergraduates enrolled in public and private universities in Saudi Arabia. Participants aged 18 years and above were recruited using convenience sampling through university networks and student organizations. Data were collected via an online structured questionnaire that included validated scales: the 10-item UCLA Loneliness Scale, the 8-item Nomophobia Questionnaire (NMP-Q), the WHO-5 Well-being Index, selected items from the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), researcher-developed Perceived Supportive Campus Environment items, and two academic engagement items. Descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation, hierarchical multiple regression, mediation analysis, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) were performed using SPSS and AMOS (version 29). Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha (acceptable ≥ 0.70). The threshold for statistical significance was established at p < .05. Among 2,540 undergraduates, social isolation was negatively associated with well-being (β = −0.048, p = .015) and perceived social support was positively associated with well-being (β = 0.048, p = .015); both were statistically significant predictors, though the well-being model explained less than 1% of the variance (R² = 0.006). Smartphone dependence showed a marginal, non-significant positive trend with well-being (β = 0.037, p = .059), and perceived Perceived Supportive Campus Environment was not a significant correlate of well-being (β = 0.019, p = .337). No study variables significantly predicted academic engagement (R² = 0.002). These relationships were statistically significant where noted, but the effect sizes were uniformly small and should be interpreted accordingly. The results of the SEM revealed an overall good model fit (χ²/df = 1.280, CFI = 0.965, RMSEA = 0.010), except for TLI (0.868), which falls slightly below the conventional 0.90 cutoff, indicating room for model refinement in future studies. Social isolation was negatively associated with student well-being, whereas perceived social support was positively associated with well-being. Smartphone dependence and perceived supportive Perceived Supportive Campus Environment were not statistically significant predictors of well-being in the regression analyses. Although several associations reached statistical significance, the uniformly small effect sizes and very low explained variance indicate that these findings should be interpreted cautiously. The results provide preliminary descriptive evidence regarding psychosocial correlates of student well-being among Saudi undergraduates rather than strong predictive relationships. Well-being was not associated with academic engagement, suggesting that additional factors beyond those examined in this study may better explain academic engagement.