Abstract
Mental health crisis among college students has been reported to be increasing exponentially year after year. This non-experimental quantitative study investigated the correlates of positive mental health of college students in an attempt to better explore and understand the positive mental health among students, specifically in the context of Region XI, Philippines. Specifically, the study considered the mediating role of belongingness in the relationship between self-esteem and positive mental health. The data were gathered through online surveys using adapted questionnaires to measure the constructs. The 431 respondents enrolled from various universities and colleges within the region were identified using stratified random sampling. The data were analyzed using Jamovi 2.0 for descriptive statistical analyses and SmartPLS 4.0 software to assess the hypothesized mediation model using bootstrapping. The findings revealed that college students have moderate levels of self-esteem, belongingness, and positive mental health. Further, the indices for direct effects suggest strong links between these variables, leading to a significant partial mediation of belongingness on self-esteem and positive mental health. Recommendations and implications of the research were provided in the paper.
