Vol. 7, Issue 2, Part H (2025)

Background: University students are exposed to multiple academic and psychosocial stressors that can influence their mental health and emotional well-being. Assessing mood states and identifying mood profile patterns can provide important insights for mental health promotion in university settings.

Purpose: This study aimed to assess mood states among university students to identify distinct mood profile patterns.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 722 postgraduate students from Tripura University, India, selected through convenience sampling. Mood states were assessed using the BRUMS, which measures anger, depression, tension, vigor, fatigue, and confusion. Descriptive statistics were calculated for all mood dimensions, and cluster analysis was performed to classify participants into standard mood profile types.

Results: Vigor showed the highest mean score (M = 8.54, SD = 2.31), indicating relatively high positive mood. Negative mood states demonstrated low to moderate mean values, with anger and depression showing high positive skewness and kurtosis, suggesting non-normal distributions. Mood profile analysis revealed that the Shark Fin profile was most prevalent (25.9%), followed by Inverse Everest (20.4%) and Submerged (18.4%) profiles. The Iceberg profile, reflecting optimal mental health, was observed in only 10.1% of students.

Conclusion: Despite high vigor levels, the predominance of non-Iceberg mood profiles indicates underlying mental health concerns among university students. Targeted interventions focusing on mental health promotion and physical activity are warranted.