The Optimism Effect: How Core Self-Evaluation Shapes Well-Being in Punjab’s Nursing Students

Abstract

Background: The current study investigates the intricate relationship between dispositional optimism, core self-evaluation, and mental well-being among nursing students. The present research aims to understand the mediating role of core self-evaluation on nursing students’ well-being and dispositional optimism.

Methods: The present study was cross-sectional in nature and included a purposively selected sample of 286 (112 females, 172 males) nursing students from Punjab (India). Students completed a measure of a short version of the Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, The Revised Life Orientation Test (LOT-R), and the Core Self-evaluations Scale. The collected data was analyzed using correlational and multiple regression analysis. Moreover, the mediational analysis was analyzed using the Hayes PROCESS macro.

Results: The results indicated that core self-evaluation (β=0.606, p<0.01) and dispositional optimism (β=0.394, p<0.01) are significant predictors of nursing students’ mental well-being. Mediation analysis showed that core self-evaluation completely mediated the relationship between dispositional optimism and mental well-being. Furthermore, it was found that the measures of t-value of dispositional optimism (t=-1.536), and mental well-being (t=-1.594) were non-significant at the 0.05 level, while significant differences were found in core self-evaluation (t=-2.223).

Conclusion: The results of the present study demonstrated the predictive role of dispositional optimism and core self-evaluation in the mental well-being of nursing students. Moreover, the current study highlighted the underlying mechanism through which dispositional optimism influences nursing students’ mental well-being.