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College Student Mental Health Amidst the Covid-19 Pandemic

Stacy Rivera

California State University, Channel Islands

HLTH 499 - Senior Capstone Project

Professor Ashley Winans

03/05/2020
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College Student Mental Health Amidst the Covid-19 Pandemic

Colleges and universities around the world were faced with unique challenges as the

2020 spring semester was interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, forcing students and faculty

onto an online learning platform. The immediate concerns of campuses transitioning from face-

to-face instruction to virtual learning included how instructors would adjust their curriculum to

accommodate the new online format, ensuring all students had adequate resources necessary to

continue their studies and a means of maintaining effective communication between students and

faculty to ease the transition and successfully allow for completion of the spring term. However,

as the spring semester neared its end, it became clear that students faced additional challenges:

mental health issues. The loss of income due to lay-offs, drastic and novel increases to both

stress and anxiety, the necessity of suddenly developing new coping mechanisms, while

simultaneously experiencing an overall lack of social support mechanisms provided a catalyst for

the magnification and onset of ongoing mental health issues. Exactly one year later students

continue to deal with the mental health issues directly related to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Trends in Mental Health Decline

After the rising Covid-19 cases in the United States forced colleges and universities to

close their doors a new series of stressors presented themselves. As students adjusted to the new

“normal” many found themselves dealing with negative emotions they had yet to experience.

Grubic et al. (2020) explain, “Approximately 25% of their sample reported experiencing anxiety

symptoms, which were positively correlated with increased concerns about academic delays,

economic effects of the pandemic, and impacts on daily life” (Grubic et al., 2020). While

academic stress is hardly unfamiliar to college students, the stress of having to uproot their

established routines in the middle of a semester and establish new methods of learning, studying,
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and communicating without traditional face-to-face interactions led to heightened anxiety

beyond what would reasonably be expected in terms of college student stress and anxiety levels.

Research by Zhai and Du (2020) explains, “Before the pandemic started, one in five college

students experienced one or more diagnosable mental disorders worldwide”. The transition from

campus life as it existed before to the “new normal” of online instruction with little to no social

support or interaction will likely skew this statistic to be much worse.

Depression

During a time of heightened stress and anxiety, students are finding it necessary to

navigate college life without the social support of friends and faculty. It is important to note that

prolonged feelings of loneliness and social isolation can naturally lead to negative psychological

outcomes such as depression. While social isolation is described as “a state of estrangement with

limited or absent social connections” (Matthews et al., 2016), and loneliness is described as “a

subjective feeling of distress arising from a sense of inadequate social connections” (Matthews et

al., 2016), the two concepts often go hand in hand and play a role in the development and

magnification of existing depression. Depression affects student outcomes in more ways than

one. Eisenberg et al. (2009) explain, “We find that depression is a significant predictor of lower

GPA and higher probability of dropping out, even after controlling for symptoms of anxiety and

eating disorders, prior academic performance, and other covariates”. Additionally, research by

Breslau et.al (2008) suggests, “Mental health problems early in life are associated with adverse

academic, occupational, health, and social outcomes” (as cited in Eisenberg et al., 2009) and the

Covid-19 pandemic arguably affects each discipline in one way or another. The college years can

be taxing enough on student mental health without the disruption of an established routine and

the stress perpetuated by changes brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. According to a non-
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formal survey conducted by Rise, a college affordability advocacy group, results showed that

“roughly 75% of the U.S. college students that responded were experiencing higher levels of

anxiety, stress, and depression due to the coronavirus outbreak” (Dennon, 2020). Needless to

say, the changes brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic have taken a major toll on student mental

health and it is important to identify the risk factors leading to such outcomes as well as

appropriate coping strategies to help prevent the latter.

Risk Factors

Some of the driving factors that play a big role in the decline of student mental health are

lack of social support and increased alcohol consumption. As nationwide stay-at-home orders

went into effect many students found themselves dealing with feelings of loneliness and

depression in addition to academic stress and anxiety. Brière et al. (2014) explain, “The

relationship between symptoms of depression and problematic alcohol use appear to be bi-

directional in nature; that is, elevated symptoms of depression predict increased likelihood of

developing an alcohol-related disorder, and alcohol problems predict future depressive

symptoms” (as cited in Lechner et al., 2020). Social support appears to be one of the most

important factors in preventing mental health decline as well as preventing an increase in alcohol

use. These factors do not necessarily always go hand in hand but one can certainly influence the

other. For example, a survey with data from roughly 2,000 students from an Ohio university

indicated that “students with greater perceived social support reported less alcohol consumption”

(Lechner et al., 2020). Therefore, it can be determined that students with less social support

either from friends or family are more likely to experience a decline in mental health as they face

the stress and anxiety of the unknowns of this pandemic alone.

Coping Strategies
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Exactly one year later college students continue to find themselves at home completing

their studies via distance learning. As expected college students have adapted to the “new

normal” and have developed coping strategies to help them face the adversities of the pandemic

including navigating college without in-person instruction and feelings of loneliness and

isolation. A survey with data from 2,031 college students showed that the number one coping

mechanism was seeking social support. Wang et al. (2020) explain, “When asked what coping

mechanisms were used to mitigate stress/anxiety, more than half (n=1362, 67.06%) of the

participants chose “support from community, family and friends” (Wang et al., 2020). As

mentioned before, lack of social support is a risk factor for developing anxiety and depression

and students are better protected by reaching out for support as needed. As the state of the world

continues to move forward amid the pandemic restrictions are lessening making it possible to

reestablish interaction and social support. Technology has also played a role in supporting

students during this time as FaceTime calls and Zoom meetings and “happy hours” became

common practice as socializing events to mitigate the decline in mental health. Additionally,

some students began using mindfulness apps specifically focusing on meditation to help cope

with stress and anxiety (Wang et al., 2020). As colleges and universities continue to adapt their

planning for upcoming semesters it would be beneficial to establish programs that focus on

providing students with academic support as well as social support to help guide them through

the rest of this pandemic.

Conclusion

The Covid-19 pandemic has been challenging for everyone but college students face

additional challenges as they have to overcome the struggles of online learning as well as

increasing levels of stress, anxiety, and depression at higher rates than normal. It is dangerous to
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ignore the signs of declining mental health as it can lead to many negative outcomes including

poor grades and lower GPA, alcohol abuse, and prolonged depression and anxiety. For those

reasons, colleges and universities must consider these factors when planning future semesters as

the world sees its way through the end of this pandemic. Likewise, social support has proven to

be a key factor in preventing negative outcomes therefore the best thing college students can do

to prevent and protect themselves from declining mental health is to strengthen their social

relationships. Covid-19 has affected the entire world with no exception of gender, age, religion,

and race or ethnicity therefore it is important to be gentle with others as these are truly

unprecedented times.
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References

Dennon, A. (2020, April 22). Coronavirus and the student mental health crisis.

BestColleges. Retrieved from https://www.bestcolleges.com/blog/coronavirus-and-

student-mental-health-crisis/

Eisenberg, D., Golberstein, E. & Hunt, J. (2009). Mental health and academic success in

college. The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, 9(1).

https://doi.org/10.2202/1935-1682.2191

Grubic, N., Badovinac, S., & Johri, A. M. (2020). Student mental health in the midst of the

COVID-19 pandemic: A call for further research and immediate solutions. International

Journal of Social Psychiatry, 66(5), 517–518.

https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764020925108

Lechner, W. V., Laurene, K. R., Patel, S., Anderson, M., Grega, C., & Kenne, D. R. (2020).

Changes in alcohol use as a function of psychological distress and social support

following COVID-19 related University closings. Addictive Behaviors, 110, 106527.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2020.106527

Matthews, T., Danese, A., Wertz, J., Odgers, C. L., Ambler, A., Moffitt, T. E., &

Arseneault, L. (2016). Social isolation, loneliness and depression in young adulthood: a

behavioural genetic analysis. Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 51(3), 339–

348. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-016-1178-7

Wang, X., Hegde, S., Son, C., Keller, B., Smith, A., & Sasangohar, F. (2020). Investigating

mental health of US college students during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross-sectional

survey study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(9). https://doi.org/10.2196/22817

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Zhai, Y., & Du, X. (2020). Addressing collegiate mental health amid COVID-19

pandemic. Psychiatry Research, 288, 113003.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113003