The mediation role of cognitive flexibility, loneliness and social support in the relationship between university students' levels of uncertainty intolerance and post-traumatic growth in the COVID 19 pandemic: Testing different models

This study is aimed to reveal the mediating roles of cognitive flexibility, loneliness, and social support in the relationship between university students' intolerance to uncertainty and post-traumatic growth levels. The quantitative data of the research consist of 541 students from Anadolu University who participated voluntarily. The qualitative data of the study were collected through semi-structured interviews with 7 volunteer participants with a high level of post-traumatic growth. The data of the study was collected from Personal Information Form, Post-Traumatic Growth Scale (PTAS), Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (BST), Cognitive Flexibility Scale (CFS), UCLA Loneliness Scale Short Form (ULS-8), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) and Semi-Structured Interview Form. In the quantitative dimension of the study, Structural Equation Modeling was used to examine the mediating role of cognitive flexibility, loneliness, and social support in the relationship between intolerance to uncertainty and post-traumatic growth levels of university students in the COVID-19 pandemic and it was revealed that cognitive flexibility, loneliness and social support were fully mediated. Obtained indirect effects were found to be significant by bootstrapping analysis. In the qualitative aspect of the study, it was revealed that university students with high post-traumatic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic have difficulties in terms of uncertainty, isolation and difficulty adapting and they use cognitive, relational, behavioral and transcendent coping methods to overcome these difficulties. It has been determined that university students with a high-level post-traumatic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic experienced changes in their interpersonal relationships, self-perception, recognition of new opportunities, meaning of life, spiritual life.