LAUSR

The left-behind experience refers to the experience of children who were taken care of by caregivers in their hometowns for ≥6 months before reaching age 18, as one or both parents left the rural hometown for better paying jobs in bigger cities. The current study was conducted with college students to test the effect of the left-behind experience on self-efficacy. The General Self-Efficacy Scale and a questionnaire designed by the authors were adopted for a survey of 200 Chinese college students in their final year of university. Of 200 students, 72 (36%) students had ≥6 months of left-behind experience before reaching age 18. Results did not show statistically significant difference in self-efficacy between college students with or without left-behind experience (p > 0.05). In addition, researchers found no significant difference in self-efficacy between college students with left-behind experience from different backgrounds. Further research and focus on this area is necessary. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, xx(x), xx-xx.].