Educational contexts that nurture students' psychological needs predict low distress and healthy lifestyle through facilitated self-control

Psychological distress and unhealthy lifestyle behaviors are highly prevalent among undergraduate students. Importantly, numerous longitudinal studies show that these phenomena rise significantly during the first months of college and remain high thereafter. However, research identifying theory-driven mechanisms to explain these phenomena is lacking. Using two complementary statistical approaches (person- and variable-centered), this study assesses basic psychological needs (BPNs) and self-control as possible explanatory factors underlying the association between student's educational experience and multiple health-related outcomes. A total of 2450 Canadian undergraduates participated in this study study involving two time points (12 months apart; NThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-022-04019-5.