Investigating the Relationship Between Sluggish Cognitive Tempo and Quality of Life With Controlling Anxiety, Depression, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms in Iranian College Students

Sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) is an essential psychological and psychiatric construct affecting distinct aspects of a person’s life. This study investigates whether SCT affects the quality of life (QoL) and whether this effect will persist after controlling attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, depression, and anxiety.

This descriptive correlational study was conducted on college students in Mashhad City, Iran. The participants were 279 students selected by the convenience sampling method from September 2020 to February 2021. The data collection tools included the Barkley adult ADHD rating scale-IV (Barkley, 2011), the depression, anxiety, and stress scale (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995), and the 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36) (Ware & Sherbourne, 1992). Hierarchical regression analysis was used to examine the hypotheses. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS software, version 24. The significance level of the research was considered α=0.05.

Correlation results showed that SCT, ADHD symptoms, anxiety, and depression are negatively correlated with the physical and mental dimensions of QoL. The results of the hierarchical regression analysis showed that SCT was negatively associated with the total QoL (F change=4.1, P<0.05) and mental dimensions of QoL (F change=3.8, P<0.05) after controlling anxiety, depression, and ADHD symptoms.

SCT is associated with low QoL among Iranian college students, and this relationship remains present after controlling ADHD, anxiety, and depression. In addition, the results of this research emphasize the importance of considering QoL in prospective research and SCT intervention.