Perceived social support, self esteem, sense of mastery, and mental health among Vietnamese secondary school students

Abstract

Perceived social support is associated with adolescent mental health, but the pathways linking support with positive func-tioning and psychological problems remain insufficiently examined in Vietnamese schools. This study examined associa-tions among support from family and friends, self-esteem, sense of mastery, life satisfaction, and internalizing and external-izing problems. It also tested self-esteem and sense of mastery as parallel statistical mediators. A cross-sectional survey included 375 students in Grades 8-11 from lower- and upper-secondary schools in Hanoi, Vietnam. Participants completed translated self-report measures. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlations were calculated in SPSS, while direct and specific indirect associations were estimated using partial least squares structural equation modeling with 5,000 bootstrap resamples. Social support was positively associated with self-esteem, sense of mastery, and life satisfaction and negatively associated with internalizing and externalizing problems. Self-esteem was positively associated with life satisfaction and negatively associated with both problem domains. Sense of mastery was negatively associated with internalizing and externalizing problems but was not significantly associated with life satisfaction. Self-esteem showed statistical partial mediation of the associations between social support and all three outcomes. Sense of mastery showed statistical partial mediation of the associations between social support and internalizing and externalizing problems, but not life satisfaction. Self-esteem showed a broader indirect role across positive functioning and psychological problems, whereas sense of mas-tery was specifically associated with fewer internalizing and externalizing problems. The findings may inform school- and family-based efforts to strengthen supportive relationships, positive self-evaluation, and students’ perceived capacity to manage difficulties.