Annotated Bibliography

Browning, M., Larson L., Sharaievska I., Rigolon A., McAnirlin O., & Mullenbach L. (2021).

“Psychological impacts from COVID-19 among university students: Risk factors across

seven states in the United States”. PLoS ONE 16(1): e0245327.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0245327

The authors, researchers from Clemson University and North Carolina State University,

used web-based questionnaires and mixed-effects logistic regression to identify and

evaluate the psychological impacts of COVID-19 and associated demographic factors on

college students. Browning, a researcher from Clemson University, found that students

who were women, Non-Hispanic Asian, in poor health, belong to below-average income,

or knew someone who contracted COVID-19 experienced high levels of stress, anxiety,

and depressive symptoms. He concluded that being an 18- to 24-year-old, spending eight

or more hours on screen, or knowing someone infected likely increases these levels. This

research was intended for university administrators, to understand the critical significance

of immediate mental health intervention in universities. A similar survey study by Soria

and Horgos (2020), researchers from the University of Minnesota, specifically found

students from lower social backgrounds have higher anxiety and depression disorder

rates. (M.S.)
Cao, W., Fang, Z., Hou, G., Han, M., Xu, X., Dong, J., & Zheng, J.. (2020). The psychological

impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on college students in China. Psychiatry Research,

287, 112934–112934. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112934

Cao et al. (2020) evaluate the anxiety rates of Chinese college students during the

COVID-19 pandemic. Wen-Jun Cao, an assistant professor at the Delft University of

Technology, and the other authors of this article found that 21.3% of the participants

exhibited anxiety symptoms. They also discovered that the situations correlated with

lower rates of anxiety were living with parents, living in urban areas, and having fewer

economic stressors. Their intended audience is professionals in the field of psychology

and policymakers. The article by Son, Hegde, Smith, Wang, & Sasangohar (2020)– Son

is a graduate research assistant at Texas A&M University– and this article by Cao et al.

(2020) examines anxiety in their articles. While the first article considers what raises

anxiety in students, the latter assesses what situations correlate with lower rates of

anxiety in students. (M.M.)

Chi, X., Becker, B., Yu, Q., Willeit, P., Jiao, C., Huang, L., Hossain, M.M., Grabovac, I., Yeung,

A., Lin, J., Veronese, N., Wang, J., Zhou, X., Doig, S.R., Liu, X., Carvalho, A.F., Yang,

L., Xiao, T., Zou, L., & Solmi, M.. (2020). Prevalence and Psychosocial Correlates of

Mental Health Outcomes Among Chinese College Students During the Coronavirus

Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11, 803–803.

https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00803
 Chi et al. (2020) searched for the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety, depression, and

PTSD amongst Chinese College Students as a result of COVID-19 and which

demographics exhibit the highest percentages of symptoms. A significant number of

participants in the survey showed signs of anxiety, depression, PTSD, or a combination

of two or all three of the disorders. Xinli Chi, a professor at Shenzhen University, and the

other authors of this article conducted their research for their intended audience of those

intervening in the mental health of college students. This article by Chi et al. (2020) and

the articles by Driessen, Beatty, Stokes, Wood, & Ballen (2020), the article by Soria and

Horgos (2020), and the article by Browning et al. (2021) all explore how different

demographics’ mental health is affected by the pandemic, and try to find which groups

are hardest hit. (M.M)

Driessen, E., Beatty, A., Stokes, A., Wood, S., & Ballen, C. (2020). Learning principles of

evolution during a crisis: An exploratory analysis of student barriers one week and one

month into the COVID‐19 pandemic. Ecology & Evolution (20457758), 10(22), 12431–

12436. https://doi-org.lib-proxy.fullerton.edu/10.1002/ece3.6741

This research by Driessen, Beatty, Stokes, Wood, & Ballen (2020) informs audiences of

the impacts of COVID-19 regarding the study habits of undergraduate students in a

biology class one week and one month after the transition to online learning. This survey

conducted by the Department of Biology at Auburn University found study habits were

commonly affected by emotional factors such as anxiety, a sense of confusion, and lack

of motivation. The authors’ intended audience is researchers and instructors. They hope
 this study helps them assist students who may be facing similar academic challenges. In

contrast, the article by Yang et al. (2021) focuses on Chinese college students but

similarly examines how stress factors like lack of motivation affect the workload of

college students. Additionally, it was found that separation from school and fears of

contagion caused stress on students. (K.G)

López-Castro, T., Brandt, L., Anthonipillai, N. J., Espinosa, A., & Melara, R. (2021).

Experiences, impacts and mental health functioning during a COVID-19 outbreak and

lockdown: Data from a diverse New York City sample of college students. PLoS ONE,

16(4), 1–17. https://doi-org.lib-proxy.fullerton.edu/10.1371/journal.pone.0249768

This study by López-Castro, Brandt, Anthonipillai, Espinosa, & Melara (2021)

documents COVID-19’s impact on the psychosocial health of college students who

attend a diverse institution in New York City. The research conducted by The City of

New York and the Division of Substance Use Disorders concludes that stress factors like

their home life, work-life, social environment, and emotional and physical health

contributed to their levels of depression and anxiety. Approximately 90% of students

reported symptoms of depression, two-thirds reported symptoms of anxiety, and women

reported higher strains than men. They hope to assist their intended audiences of

researchers and instructors to develop better ways to protect students’ mental health

during a crisis. Similarly, the research article conducted by Browning et al. (2021)

discusses the different identities that were more mentally affected. However, they
 concluded that women of younger age suffered higher psychological impacts during the

pandemic. (K.G.)

Son, C., Hegde, S., Smith, A., Wang, X., & Sasangohar, F. (2020). Effects of COVID-19 on

College Students' Mental Health in the United States: Interview Survey Study. Journal of

Medical Internet Research, 22(9), e21279–e21279. https://doi.org/10.2196/21279

Researchers at Texas A&M University, like Changwon Son, a Ph.D. candidate, and

graduate research assistant, assessed how COVID-19 increased US college students’

anxiety rates. In the study by Son et al. (2020), 71% of participants reported increased

anxiety. They examined what stress factors raised students’ anxiety rates (like worry

about getting COVID-19, financial concerns, academic stressors, etc.). Their intended

audience is those in the field of psychology and the mental health department of colleges.

This article by Son et al. (2020) and Yang, Chen, A., & Chen, Y. (2021) both examine

anxiety rates in students and search for the major stressors causing anxiety and

depression to increase during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the first article focuses on

the aforementioned stress factors, the latter also includes isolation, difficulties in

communication, and social distancing’s effect on relationships. (M.M.)

Soria, K. M., & Horgos, B. (2020). Social class differences in students’ experiences during the

COVID-19 pandemic. SERU Consortium, University of California - Berkeley, and

University of Minnesota. https://cshe.berkeley.edu/seru-covid-survey-reports

 The study by Soria and Horgos (2020) examined the impact of COVID-19 on different

social backgrounds, assessing five areas: financial hardship, food insecurity, housing

insecurity, mental health, and academic obstacles. Krista Soria, an assistant director of

research for SERU at the University of Minnesota, documented how the pandemic

response significantly and negatively impacted students from low-income/poor and

working-class backgrounds. These students were more likely to experience financial

hardships, food insecurity, and housing insecurity, which lead to high rates of anxiety and

depression disorders. The study was intended for universities to reconfigure programs

and consider these factors, significantly how the pandemic further widened the equity gap

between social classes. Online learning transition contributed to significant increases in

living and technology expenses. This article correlates with the research studies by

Browning et al. (2021) and Yang, Chen, A., & Chen, Y. (2021), which builds on the

different factors to college students’ mental health. (M.S.)

Thomas, C. A., & Spencer, T. L. (2020). Navigating the Effects of Covid-19 at a Southeastern

American HBCU. Virginia Social Science Journal, 54, 94–101, https://web-a-ebscohost-

com.lib-proxy.fullerton.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=3&sid=9d4a8cee-2bdf-4ae8-

9203-ca6ed4e9100e%40sessionmgr4007.

The COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated obstacles for college students to acquire the

necessary tools for academic success, which has instigated increased pressures in

depression and finances. Authors C. Adrainne Thomas and Trina L. Spencer are

educators at Virginia State University, an HBCU (Historically Black College or

 University) where the pandemic has impacted students’ academic and personal lives with

online learning. Thomas and Spencer adopt the five personal high-touch needs or

learning dispositions of challenge, commitment, control, creativity, and caring to assess

teaching strategies to meet the student’s needs. The authors intend to offer the methods to

an audience of other instructors of colleges and universities for an efficient transition to

online learning. Like educators Yang, Chen, A., & Chen, Y. (2021), instructors at

colleges and universities deliberate teaching amidst social distancing effectively.

However, Thomas et al. delve deeper into focusing on student needs in a new online

learning structure. (C.V.)

Yang, C., Chen, A., & Chen, Y. (2021). College students’ stress and health in the COVID-19

pandemic: The role of academic workload, separation from school, and fears of

contagion. National Natural Science Foundation of China, 16(2),

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0246676.

A survey of university students, instructors present correlations between academic

stresses further complemented by fears of contagion developed by the COVID-19

pandemic. Chunjiang Yang, Aobo Chen, and Yashuo Chen are all part of the faculty,

where the investigative survey study was conducted at the School of Economics and

Management, Yanshan University in China. The instructors seek to present the findings

to college-educated audiences as the research is centered around that demographic.

Student’s academic workload, experience with remote online learning, and fears of the

COVID-19 pandemic were surveyed. Instructors find that socialization helps promote
mental and physical health. Similarly, educators Thomas et al. (2020) demonstrate an

incrementing college students’ mental strain trend. However, Yang, Chen, A., & Chen,

Y. are more articulate in the data and statistical analysis of the surveys as age and gender

demographics are noted for more accurate conclusions. (C.V.)