Chunrong Zuo,1,2 Nor Shafrin Ahmad,2 Lyu Zeng,1 Xiaogang Zhou,3 Feifei Li,2,4 Wuman Hong,2 Ping Gao1 

1School of Education, Huainan Normal University, Anhui, 232038, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Educational Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Gelugor, Penang, 11800, Malaysia; 3College of Physical Education and Health Science, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321000, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Art, Shandong Agricultural University, Shandong, 271000, People’s Republic of China

Correspondence: Nor Shafrin Ahmad, School of Educational Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Gelugor, Penang, 11800, Malaysia, Tel +60 465 325 69, Email sham@usm.my Xiaogang Zhou, College of Physical Education and Health Science, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321000, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 183 2904 0923, Email brucechou123456@gmail.com

Background and Objective: The mental health of economically disadvantaged college students in China is notably inferior to that of their non-disadvantaged peers. As such, these students necessitate a broader spectrum of psychological support beyond mere financial assistance. Seligman’s PERMA theory has established a compelling association between social support and positive emotions with subjective well-being. However, there is a scarcity of research focusing on character strengths within this framework, particularly the mechanisms that underlie their relationship. Hence, this study aims to examine the relationship between character strengths and subjective well-being among Chinese impoverished college students, while also delving into the chain mediating roles of perceived social support and positive emotions.
Methods: A convenience sampling method was employed to collect cross-sectional data from impoverished college students. Participants (N=336, Mean age=20.67) were assessed using four instruments: the Chinese Virtues Questionnaire (CVQ-96), the Perceived Social Support Scale (PSSS), the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS), and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS).
Results: Character strengths, perceived social support, positive emotions, and subjective well-being were all significantly positively correlated with each other (p< 0.01). In addition, regression analysis indicated that character strengths positively predicted perceived social support (β=0.71, p< 0.001), positive emotions (β=0.44, p< 0.001), and subjective well-being (β=0.52, p< 0.001). Perceived social support positively predicted positive emotions (β=0.34, p< 0.001), and subjective well-being (β=0.44, p< 0.001). Positive emotions positively predicted subjective well-being (β=0.88, p< 0.001). Furthermore, chain mediation analysis revealed that character strengths influenced subjective well-being both directly and indirectly through perceived social support and positive emotions.
Conclusion: Perceived social support and positive emotions play a chain mediating role between character strengths and subjective well-being among impoverished college students.

Keywords: character strengths, perceived social support, positive emotions, subjective well-being, Chinese, impoverished college students