In Venezuela, since March 2020, the authorities have taken preventive measures to counteract the spread of the new coronavirus (SARS-Cov-2); these have included quarantine, social distancing, isolation, and even confinement (García-Álvarez and Cobo-Rendón, 2020). One of the consequences of these measures was the drastic shift from face-to-face university education to a model of university education called university at home. In short, it was a transition from dynamic face-to-face classes to distance learning, in a social fabric of uncertainty and high expectations. This required a constant reconstruction of the formal educational training processes in a country where there are already so many technological obstacles. Studies have reported student desertion, discouragement, and lack of support regarding motivating to participate, as a possible consequence of this implementation of emergency remote education in Latin America (García-Aretio, 2021).

Recent emerging scientific literature on student psychological well-being during COVID-19 has shown, via empirical studies, that students’ psychological well-being is low (Dodd et al., 2021) with impairments in mental and physical health (Son et al., 2020). Other longitudinal studies have also shown that students’ psychological well-being and mental health have decreased (Savage et al., 2020). In Saudi Arabia, university students reported a high prevalence of anxiety, insomnia, and depression during confinement in 2020, and family support was found to be a protective factor of well-being, especially in women (Alfawaz et al., 2021). In the United Kingdom, it was found that more than half of the student population had mental health difficulties, such as stress, anxiety, depression, and even symptoms of psychological trauma. At the same time, it was found that self-efficacy and physical exercise appeared to be coping mechanisms during confinement (Ihm et al., 2021).

Similarly, in Sweden, university students reported negative mental health experiences, such as loneliness, boredom, anxiety, stress, depressive symptoms, and concerns regarding their studies, finances, and possible contagion. In addition, they reported high-stress negative affects such as interruption of studies, confinement, and uncertainty due to the pandemic, which impacted academic self-efficacy (Berman et al., 2021). In Spain too, students reported increased anxiety during their 2020 confinement. It was also found that students with higher levels of anxiety had lower levels of academic self-efficacy, specifically male students reported higher levels of self-efficacy that the women (Alemany-Arrebola et al., 2020).

Studies have focused on personal resources as well as those related to academic contexts. University students have other outlets that bring them gratification, showing that despite adversities and difficulties, university students have found spaces of gratification in the university context, even suggesting that self-efficacy, academic satisfaction, and sense of belonging are configured as protective factors (Capone et al., 2020). Self-efficacy can be a protective factor against student insecurity and stress during this period (Gulley et al., 2021; Wen et al., 2021). It has been identified as a predictor of academic performance during COVID-19 pandemic (Talsma et al., 2021). A study in China found a positive relationship between academic self-efficacy and student well-being (Yang et al., 2021). In addition, in September 2020, another study found that university students reported good psychological well-being when some of the preventive measures were lifted by April 2020, such as the return to classes at some universities (Tan et al., 2021). Emotional self-efficacy has also been found to be negatively associated with fear of contagion in Italian university students. Low levels of emotional and academic self-efficacy have been associated with depressive symptoms and learning skill deficits during confinement (Calandri et al., 2021).

Another personal resource that has been studied during the pandemic is emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is a protective factor of well-being (Hussien et al., 2020; Bermejo-Martins et al., 2021; Moroń and Biolik-Moroń, 2021), and directly and indirectly contributes to improving psychoeducational variables in university students (Iqbal et al., 2021). It has aided in the development of resilience, well-being, and mental health in Spanish students during the COVID-19 pandemic (Bartos et al., 2021). Specifically, emotional intelligence is a predictor of psychological well-being, enabling healthier coping strategies during COVID-19 pandemic by avoiding emotional distress (Sánchez-Ruiz et al., 2021). Some experimental studies based on emotional intelligence and mindfulness in university students report a decrease in anxiety and depression symptoms during the confinement period (Sturgill et al., 2021). Another intervention based on the improvement of emotional intelligence through workshops and seminars for university students improved the levels of academic performance, academic engagement, and self-efficacy during confinement. The authors of this intervention suggest the importance of including training in socioemotional education in the university curriculum (Moreno-Fernández et al., 2020); other studies have confirmed that emotional intelligence has an impact on burnout, stress, and academic performance in the development of e-learning confined (Alam et al., 2021). It is relevant to consider emotional skills and academic self-efficacy as psychoeducational variables that may impact the adequate psychosocial functioning of students, that is, with self-perceived psychological well-being as an indicator of mental health (Ryff et al., 2021).

We would like to point out some important concepts of the variables that underpin the research we are presenting here:

In Latin America, we found some antecedents focused on psychological well-being in university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Peru, researchers found a deterioration of psychological well-being relating to low psychological coping strategies (Campos et al., 2020). In another study in Guatemala, with a higher percentage of female participation (66.7%), the authors also found average levels of multidimensional psychological well-being during COVID-19 confinement. Possibly explained by resilient factors and low anxiety (González-Aguilar, 2021).

In Colombia, with a sample of Psychology students that included a greater number of female participants (80.4%), they found average levels of multidimensional psychological well-being, although with low dimensions of social relationships or bonds, as well as in the dimension of autonomy, measured during weeks six and nine of declared preventive social isolation in the country (Araque-Castellanos et al., 2020). In the same context, another study was developed on psychological well-being in Psychology students. A greater female participation was identified (78.85%). The authors found high levels of multidimensional psychological well-being, suggesting that there were possibly socio-cultural or psychological factors that could protect the mental health of students (Ruiz-Domínguez et al., 2020). It is interesting to note that, in several studies on the effects of the pandemic on student well-being, women presented greater participation in these investigations.

The COVID-19 pandemic is considered a healthcare crisis. In Venezuela, this is combined with political, social, and economic crises. Against this background, this study seeks to generate paths of action educational and intervention to prevent psychosocial risks and promote mental health of undergraduates. Some studies conducted in 2020 have shown high levels of anxiety, emotional intelligence (Giménez and Medici, 2021), increased stress, and depression without risk of psychosis in the Venezuelan general population (Raggio et al., 2021). A study with university students in Maracaibo, Venezuela reported that students maintained an adequate level of self-efficacy that allowed them to manage their academic load, despite difficulties in planning and completion of tasks in a timely manner (Romero et al., 2021). The antecedents at the global, Latin American, and national levels suggest the relevance of studying psychological well-being as a relational variable in the educational context during the pandemic.

This study is part of the research trends referred to in the “university student” person. This research seeks to understand psycho-social factors that influence mental health and university experience in a period of life considered highly stressful due to the different demands and conditions of adaptation, permanence, and progress in university studies. In the same way, there is a growing interest in psychological and educational science in studying personal and social resources that can be considered as protective or resilient factors in times of pandemic, an event that can be considered psychosocial trauma. We are interested in studying the personal and social resources that can be considered as protective and that can mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic on students at the university level (UNESCO, 2020; Parra-Sandoval, 2021).

Therefore, this research is justified in contributing to the study of university students in a person-oriented approach, emphasizing psychological well-being in relation to emotional intelligence skills, including a psychoeducational variable such as academic self-efficacy in the research design. Study carried out during a COVID-19 pandemic in a country with a generalized social, economic, and political crisis. The contributions of this study are: (a) approach to the object of well-being from a salutogenic approach, and not from an approach based on the detection or screen of symptoms; (b) corroborate that personal factors such as emotional intelligence and academic self-efficacy can be protective factors of student psychological well-being in crisis situations such as the pandemic; (c) the results can contribute to the design of psychosocial interventions for students that can enhance personal resources as resilient factors, it is also important to take into account the gender approach for the construction of well-being; and (d) In a Latin American context, the manuscript stands out as an important background in studying the variables mentioned in a pandemic context that gives a cross-sectional impression of how students have maintained their well-being. Studies are needed to explore mental health, the impact of educational changes on psychological well-being, as well as health promotion in the development of the pandemic, but also in the post-pandemic return to school (Wang et al., 2021).

The objectives of the research were: (a) to describe emotional intelligence skills, academic self-efficacy and multidimensional psychological well-being in university students in Venezuela during the COVID-19 pandemic; (b) to determine whether there are statistically significant differences according to gender and age of the students; and (c) to analyze the predictive capacity of academic self-efficacy and each of the emotional intelligence skills on each of the dimensions of psychological well-being.

This is a cross-sectional and empirical-predictive study, with non experimental research design. It is a cross-sectional study, since only one measurement of the variables of interest we are made. It is of an empirical-predictive type, since the analysis of the variables we are carried out employing quantitative methods (Ato et al., 2013).

The results showed low average levels of emotional intelligence skills in the following order: comprehension (Me = 27; IQR = 10), attention (Me = 25; IQR = 10), and regulation (Me = 25; IQR = 12). Regarding self-perceived academic self-efficacy, students reflected an adequate level of confidence in their competence to efficiently fulfill their academic duties during the pandemic (Me = 4; IQR = 2). Results showed average levels of psychological well-being (Me = 35; IQR = 5), suggesting the need for psychological intervention to promote adequate psychosocial functioning in the dimensions of control, self-acceptance, autonomy, bonds, and Project or purpose in life. See Table 1 for descriptive analyses of variables and reliability indicators.

Our central objective was to determine the predictive role of academic self-efficacy and emotional intelligence skills on the psychological well-being of university students during a period of confinement due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the difficulties related to the pandemic, university students show an average level of psychological well-being, possibly promoted by their personal resources of emotional understanding and regulation. We also found an adequate level of academic self-efficacy, possibly allowing them to organize motivational and behavioral efforts to perform tasks, reports, exams, and other activities demanded by university academic life.

Regarding emotional intelligence skills (Fernández-Berrocal et al., 2004), the participating students showed adequate attention. Students report the ability to read their emotions and feelings by being able to experience them. They can consciously recognize their emotions and identify what they feel by giving it a verbal label. At the level of emotional understanding, the participating students can understand themselves, identifying their needs and desires, being able to integrate what they feel within their complex thinking considering the changes according to the context marked by adversity.

The university students presented adequate emotional regulation. Emotional regulation is a skill that would help them to control their own emotional response to intense situations. It is suggested that students can generate alternative adaptive thoughts to control/regulate the different variations that may occur during the day. Can tolerate frustration and feel confident in the face of goals they set in the midst of a pandemic. This finding is congruent with their level of academic self-efficacy, which was adequate. Possibly helping them to continue in their training process despite difficulties, suggesting that they perceive themselves capable of achieving their goals, evaluating priorities and successfully facing the obstacles encountered on their way through a state of pursuit toward their academic goals during the confinement.

The psychological well-being of the students was found at a medium level, with low tendencies. This result points to opportunities for intervention to improve the experience of university students in the development of academic and professional life projects, strengthening self-acceptance and control over what happens in their lives in a context marked by adversity.

The results indicate that bonds should be strengthened in quality and quantity; we believe that bonds were one of the dimensions most affected by the pandemic together with the perceived autonomy to make decisions (Ryff, 1989; Casullo, 2002). In addition to this pandemic situation, other factors related to the critical situation of the country with which students must deal with daily can be incorporated. However, it is at a medium level despite the adversities, which is congruent with the Latin American background described above.

The background described above has emphasized exploring learning in remote emergency education, as well as approaches to mental health as an absence of psychopathology. In this study, we considered psychological well-being as an indicator of mental health related to emotional intelligence (psychic resources) and academic self-efficacy (psychoeducational). It can be stated that the results are congruent with other studies conducted in Venezuela during the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically regarding adequate levels of academic self-efficacy (Romero et al., 2021); however, our results differ from that of the study conducted by Giménez and Medici (2021) regarding emotional intelligence skills. Our results are also congruent with international evidence suggesting that self-efficacy, emotional understanding, and regulation skills may be protective factors for mental health and well-being during a pandemic (Persich et al., 2021; Sabouripour et al., 2021; Sánchez-Ruiz et al., 2021); additionally, in this study, emotional perception established a proportional inverse relationship with psychological well-being, which is congruent with other studies before the pandemic (Extremera and Fernández-Berrocal, 2006; Extremera et al., 2009).

The results confirm that self-efficacy and socioemotional aspects are important for the construction of psychological well-being in university students both pre-pandemic and during it, as they enable the need for competence, autonomy, and relationships according to the self-determination theory (Kohls et al., 2021; Matos Fialho et al., 2021). Similarly, the results are interpreted from Hobfoll’s (1989) conservation of resources theory, which emphasizes that internal resources (such as self-efficacy) at the personal level would allow people to adapt to new, changing, and unfamiliar needs. Before online emergency remote education, the university as an institution could generate external support through either programs or support tutorials that maximized or compensated students’ personal and internal resources that helped to build students’ resilience (Plakhotnik et al., 2021).

The results of this study are congruent with those of an Iranian study, which postulates that self-efficacy is closely linked to optimism, resilience, and the construct of multidimensional psychological well-being of university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. In effect, self-efficacy is a mediator of resilience to each element of well-being: environmental mastery, autonomy, self-acceptance, positive relationships with others, personal growth, and purpose in life. It is suggested that self-efficacy is linked to optimism in the sense of motivating present future-oriented behaviors (Sabouripour et al., 2021). Similarly, emotional stability and self-efficacy were significant predictors of multidimensional psychological well-being in emerging young adults in Nigeria (Bada et al., 2020).

Pre-pandemic scientific literature has also highlighted that emotional intelligence is a personal resource that can be a promoter of both hedonic and eudemonic mental health and psychological well-being (Di Fabio and Kenny, 2016; Sánchez-Álvarez et al., 2020). Similarly, one of the premises put forward by Bandura is that self-efficacy is an active element in the construction and subjectivization of psychological well-being, which can be considered a source of well-being (Sansinenea et al., 2008; Cabanach et al., 2012) even in clinical populations (Suriá and Ortigosa, 2018).

These findings highlight the university educational experience as a space for universal psychoeducational interventions aimed at the promotion of personal resources for both prevention and health promotion, and even from a gender perspective that responds to the diversity of trajectories in the construction of these psychosocial resources (Sawyer et al., 2021). In this study, differences were found only in emotional regulation and the bond dimension of well-being, and mostly among men, evidence suggesting different trajectories according to sex or gender in the experience of the same (Gartzia et al., 2012; García-Álvarez et al., 2020; López et al., 2021). There were significant differences according to age for only psychological well-being in those older than 21 years, which can be explained by the fact that those younger than 21 are in a greater situation of dependence and little autonomy. In addition, age increases the possibility of constructing the elements of multidimensional well-being (Ryff, 2014; Ryff et al., 2021).

We recommend that universities implement social-emotional education strategies that emphasize the development of emotional understanding and regulation, when it comes to factors involved in self-regulated learning and consider academic self-efficacy and its sources of promotion: direct experiences of mastery, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion, and physiological or emotional activation (Hernández, 2018; Alarcón, 2020) either online or in hybrid face-to-face and online modalities. Although, at the time of writing this article (August 2021), the vaccination process is still ongoing and there are no concrete back-to-school announcements in the country. The objective of these interventions should be to promote health and prevent psychopathology that may jeopardize university permanence of university students, where techniques are provided to develop adequate emotional management and coping strategies to face the different challenges of a university, as well as other complex events (Arias and Giuliani, 2014). We also recommend designing and implementing interventions aimed at promoting agency, a construct formed by self-efficacy, optimism, future orientation, and imagination as a psychological state that allows us to build our well-being and our future (Seligman, 2021). It would be interesting to consider the model healthy university as a management model (Burns et al., 2020).

A limitation of the present study is that the data were collected online due to the current pandemic using non-probability sampling. This represents a bias, given that responses were only obtained from students with Internet access, leaving out those without Internet access. This may have impacted the measurement of the total perception of psychological well-being across all students in a country with marked inequalities. It is also important to note that the participants were limited to Psychology students, the vast majority of whom were female, making a more equitable sample difficult. In this sense, we are recommended that future researchers replicate this study post-pandemic, to compare the results, as well as work with equal groups of men and women to facilitate the analysis of differences by sex and age. However, this was a limitation shared with most of the background described in the introduction on research conducted in this context during the pandemic.

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.

Ethical review and approval was not required for the study on human participants in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The patients/participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.

DG-Á contributed to the design of the study, reviewed the literature, interpreted the results, and wrote the manuscript. JH-L contributed to the design of the study, data extraction, data analysis, and review of the abstract and manuscript. RC-R contributed to the literature review, interpretation of the results, and review of the abstract and manuscript. All authors contributed to the manuscript and approved the submitted version.

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.