Mindfulness, emotion regulation, and mental health in Chinese college students: Cognitive reappraisal as mediator and neuroticism/openness as moderators

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BACKGROUND: Mental health concerns among college students have become an increasingly important topic. Mindfulness and emotion regulation are recognized as central psychological resources associated with mental health. Nevertheless, relatively few investigations have explored how these two variables work together, particularly when taking into account the role of personality traits, which may shape how individuals practice mindfulness and manage their emotions. METHODS: A total of 788 students from multiple universities in China participated in this study. Standardized questionnaires were used to measure mindfulness, mental health, two emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression), and the five dimensions of personality traits. Data were analyzed using SPSS 27.0, and the PROCESS macro (Models 4 and 59) was applied to examine the mediating role of emotion regulation and the moderating role of personality traits. RESULTS: Mindfulness showed a significant positive association with mental health (β = 0.338, 95 % CI [0.271, 0.406]). Cognitive reappraisal served as a partial mediator, with an indirect effect of 0.042 (95 % CI [0.017, 0.070]), whereas expressive suppression was not a significant mediator. Additional analyses revealed that neuroticism moderated the association between mindfulness and cognitive reappraisal (interaction effect β = 0.066, 95 % CI [0.007, 0.126]), and openness moderated the link between cognitive reappraisal and mental health (interaction effect β = -0.076, 95 % CI [-0.138, -0.014]). CONCLUSION: The study revealed a significant positive association between mindfulness and mental health, with cognitive reappraisal partially mediating the relationship. Neuroticism moderated the link between mindfulness and cognitive reappraisal, while openness influenced the relationship between cognitive reappraisal and mental health. These results provide a deeper understanding of the interaction between mindfulness, emotion regulation, and mental health, emphasizing the role of personality traits in designing interventions for mental health promotion.