The Mediating Role of Irrational Beliefs in the Relationship between Values and Life Aspirations with Mental Health in Students

Entering the university is a challenging life event for young adults; because students encounter changes in social communication, expectations, and roles. As a result, they are susceptible to experiencing stress and anxiety that could affect their functions. The present study was done to present a causal model as to the effect of intrinsic and extrinsic aspirations on mental health and the mediating role of irrational beliefs. The research method was descriptive correlational. To do this, 250 students from Allameh Tabatabaei University were selected via available sampling and then they answered a self-report questionnaire consisting of four Factors of Irrational Beliefs Test-Ahvaz (4IBT-A), General Health Questionnaire (28- GHQ), and Aspiration Index (AI). Data analysis was carrid out in two parts of latent and observed variables via structural equation modeling using AMOS software. The results showed that extrinsic aspirations positively predict irrational beliefs while intrinsic aspirations negatively predict irrational thoughts; intrinsic aspirations, directly and indirectly, affect mental health; but extrinsic aspirations have no direct effect on mental health; Instead, they can reduce students' mental health mediating irrational beliefs. Also, irrational beliefs had a causal and immediate impact on mental health.