The Covid-19 pandemic and mental health of first-year college students: Examining the effect of Covid-19 stressors using longitudinal data

Abstract

Purpose The Covid-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented stress to students and educational institutions across the world. We aimed to estimate the effect of the pandemic on the mental health of college students. Methods We used data on 419 first-year students (ages 18–20) at a large public university in North Carolina both before (October 2019-February 2020) and after (June/July 2020) the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. After evaluating descriptive data on mental health and stressors by students’ demographic characteristics, we estimated the associations between Covid-19 stressors (including work reductions, health, distanced learning difficulties and social isolation) and mental health symptoms and severity controlling for students’ pre-pandemic mental health, psychosocial resources, and demographic characteristics. Results We found that the prevalence of moderate-severe anxiety increased from 18.1% before the pandemic to 25.3% within four months after the pandemic began; and the prevalence of moderate-severe depression increased from 21.5% to 31.7%. White, female and sexual/gender minority (SGM) students were at highest risk of increases in anxiety symptoms. Non-Hispanic (NH) Black, female, and SGM students were at highest risk of increases in depression symptoms. General difficulties associated with distanced learning and social isolation contributed to the increases in both depression and anxiety symptoms. However, work reductions as well as Covid-19 diagnosis and hospitalization of oneself, family members or friends were not associated with increases in depression or anxiety symptoms. Conclusion Colleges may be able to reduce the mental health consequences of Covid-19 by investing in resources to reduce difficulties with distance learning and reduce social isolation during the pandemic.

Students in Graduate Program Share Coping Strategies Utilized during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Wasil et al (2021) studied how the Common Elements Toolbox, adapted for students impacted by COVID-19, could be used as an online intervention for supporting students during the pandemic. Fruehwirth et al (2021) noted an increase in anxiety and depression among students. Students indicated the main contributing factors were work reductions and social isolation.…”

The Impact of Parental Stress on Italian Adolescents’ Internalizing Symptoms during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Study

“…It not only brings the threat of death, but the strict home confinement rules disrupt the normal routines of adolescents' lives, and the subsequent stressful events may lead to increased mental health issues [1,2,8,9]. Recent longitudinal studies have compared the mental health status of adolescents during COVID-19 with that before the pandemic, and these showed that COVID-19 has caused a sharp increase in the adverse psychological adjustment of adolescents [10][11][12][13]. For instance, Li et al [10] investigated the mental health of Chinese college students during the initial stage of COVID-19 (before quarantine) and during the quarantine period and found that increased negative effects, anxiety, and depression symptoms were observed after two weeks of confinement.…”

“…Similarly, Magson et al [13] found that, compared with the states before the COVID-19 outbreak, after two months following the implementation of government restrictions and online learning, adolescents' depressive symptoms and anxiety increased significantly, and increased conflicts with their parents during the period predicted increases in mental health problems. Fruehwirth et al [12] conducted a survey of first-year college students in the United States and found that the pandemic led to an increase in the prevalence of anxiety and depression.…”

Os efeitos psicológicos do distanciamento social causado pelo novo Coronavírus em estudantes universitários

“…Medidas de quarentena, distanciamento ou isolamento social foram associadas significativamente ao risco de transtornos mentais e estudantes universitários parecem ter sido negativamente impactados pela COVID-19 (Brooks et al, 2020;Mota et al, 2021;Yang et al, 2021) com aumento de sintomas de ansiedade, depressão e outros transtornos psiquiátricos (Wieczorek et al, 2021). Ordens de lockdown, fechamento das escolas e confinamento em casa aumentam o risco de sofrimento emocional (Kohls et al, 2021;Fruehwirth; Biswas; Perreira, 2021) nessa população.…”

“…Comparativamente, os resultados mostraram um aumento na prevalência da ansiedade moderada-grave de 18,1% para 25,3%, e na prevalência da depressão moderada-grave de 21,5% para 31,7%, revelando que as dificuldades associadas à modalidade de ensino remoto e o distanciamento social contribuíram para o aumento desses sintomas. (Fruehwirth et al, 2021).…”