COVID-19 Pandemic and International Students’ Mental Health in China: Age, Gender, Chronic Health Condition and Having Infected Relative as Risk Factors

Abstract

International students in China were among the first group of individuals to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the pandemic’s impact on their mental health is underexplored. This study—utilizing web-based survey data (N = 381), presents preliminary reports using ANOVA and MIMIC analytic approaches. Following the clinical demarcation of the 21-item version of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21), we found 24.6%, 38.3%, and 43.6% of the students to suffer mild to extreme stress, anxiety, and depression, respectively. Female students reported significantly higher levels of stress and depression than males. Older students’ reports of stress were more substantial than younger students. Students who reported having a relative infected with the virus (vs. those without) experienced significantly higher anxiety and stress. Those who reported having pre-existing chronic health condition(s) (vs. those without) also reported significantly higher stress, anxiety, and depression levels. Moreover, students with an exercise routine (vs. those without) experienced significantly lower levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. Last, our MIMIC model results indicate that foreign students’ age, gender, chronic health status, and having a relative infected with the virus constitute significant risk factors explaining variations in foreign students’ experience of psychological distress. Implications for international students’ management have been thoroughly discussed.

Pre- and Post-Pandemic (COVID-19) Mental Health of International Students: Data from a Longitudinal Study

“…Flights were not resumed so they were not able to go back their countries, so these all factors impacted that quality of life and well-being. 46 The global research regarding the psychological effects on the populous of this pandemic and the lockdown has been limited in both number and quality, mostly due to targeted sampling, improper medical sampling techniques, and lack of pre-pandemic data to compare the results against. A study showed that mental stress has increased in the US since 2018, especially in young adults (18-24 years of age).…”

“…Flights were not resumed so they were not able to go back their countries, so these all factors impacted that quality of life and well-being. 46 …”

Иностранные Студенты Российских Вузов В Условиях Пандемии COVID-19: Социальная Тревога И Психоэмоциональное Состояние

“…Коллинз Антви c соавторами, исследуя иностранных студентов (N = 381) в китайских вузах [Antwi et al, 2022], обнаружили, что студенты, у которых есть родственники, зараженные вирусом (по сравнению с теми, у кого их не было), испытывали значительно более высокий уровень беспокойства и стресса. Те, кто сообщил о ранее существовавших хронических заболеваниях (по сравнению с теми, у кого их не было), также сообщили о значительно более высоком уровне стресса, тревоги и депрессии.…”

COVID-19 and Mental Health in China: Effects of Personality and Demographics

“…Several studies find some mental health deterioration in China among specific groups during the pandemic. These contributions focus on specific groups rather than on the whole population: COVID-19 patients ([8] [9] [10]); university and college students ([11] [12] [13] [14]); children and adolescents ([15] [16] [17] [18]); or other subgroups of the population ([19] [20] [21] [22] [23]). Furthermore, several of these China-based contributions use data collected during the pandemic through non-representative and mostly online surveys (e.g.…”