Determining the prevalence of depression among university students and the associated factors

Aim: the objective of this research is to investigate the university students’ frequency of depression symptoms and related factors. method: the research is a cross-sectional and epidemiological study. the population of the study consisted of 12.800 students. sampsize program was used for sample selection and the sample size was calculated as 986 people. considering that there may be incomplete or incorrect data in the study, the sample was determined as 1085 people with an increase of 10% (986 + 99). the research data was collected via a form comprising 20 questions formed by the researchers by a literature review, the beck’s depression inventory and the quality of life scale of the world health organization. for data analysis, the percentage, mean±standard deviation, independent sample t-test, one-way analysis of variance and correlation analysis were used. results and conclusion: the beck depression scale score average of the students participating in the study was found to be 11.46 ± 10.30. correlation analysis, a negative, weak and statistically significant relationship was found between the beck depression scale total score and the quality of life scale of the world health organization physical health, psychological health, social relations and environmental health sub-dimensions (respectively r=-0.32, p<0.001; r=-0.39, p<0.001; r=-0.32, p<0.001; r=-0.35, p<0.001). the frequency of depression in university students is mild. place of birth, place of residence, grade level, drug use, smoking, suicidal ideation, presence of chronic disease, health perception status, perceived weight status, physical activity status and quality of life are associated with the frequency of depression.