Paige Washburn

Mental Health in Leadership as a Result from COVID-19: A Literature Review

COVID-19 has brought a lot of challenges to the world and physical health is not the only

one. The mental health of most people has been greatly affected by the pandemic in which we

currently live (Araújo et al., 2020). For example, through the duration of the pandemic, higher

education has a choice to make in relation to the modality in which they teach their classes. Most

universities have governing boards to deal with these types of situations, but when the pandemic

hit our nation, the university president made the final call (Kelderman, 2021). Placing courses

online forces students to be completely isolated and have no social interaction with their peers , it

has been observed and proposed that due to this, there has been a great decline in mental health

(Araújo et al., 2020). Through these changes due to the pandemic, in higher education, suicide

rates have risen (Bellows, 2021). Researchers agree, a decrease in social interaction correlates to

a decrease in job performance (Araújo et al., 2020; Kruisselbrink, 2013) and an increase in

mental health problems (Araújo et al., 2020). Job performance is not restricted to a workplace, it

can occur within school or leadership positions (Araújo et al., 2020; Smith, et al. 2006).

Decreased job performance can be a result propagated by mental health, which can (but is not

limited to) include anxiety, depression, loss of confidence, suicidal thoughts and decline in

overall well-being. Not only is there a seen decrease in job performance from COVID, but the

enrollment in higher education dropped 2.7% from Fall of 2021 to Fall of 2022 (June, 2022).

Mental health is an ongoing conversation that will not have a definite solution in the near

future. It is important that this conversation continues and researchers further explore solutions
for mental health issues now more than ever. This literature review will address the observations

researchers have already made concerning the main causes of mental health in workplaces,

schools, and leadership programs. Social aspects in regards to mental health and the observations

of different leadership styles will also be discussed. Through the duration of this literature

review, knowledge will be gained on what is being said in the conversation concerning mental

health and what holes can be filled with later research to.

Mental health is always evolving and not one thing can be pinned down as a cause to

describe someone's mental health. Being mentally healthy means something different to each

person, which can make researching this topic quite challenging. There may be challenges in

one's life, but another may find it to be relatively easy to him or herself. Going through higher

education is challenging to most people, because there are many variables that make it difficult;

these variables may include academic pressure, financial burden, increased accessibility of

higher education, increased female to male student ratio, increased use of technology, and

dramatic change in the lifestyle of university and college students (Kruisselbrink, 2013). Within

the school system, there is a higher ratio of female students compared to males, but that is not

replicated in most workplaces. This may also disrupt mental stability. Women in male-dominated

workplaces feel a greater pressure due to discrimination, which can lead to further mental health

problems (Gardiner, et al., 1999). Gender is only a small factor in correlation to mental health,

and misfits in the workplace could contribute to decline in mental health (Smith, et al., 2006). A

big thing that has been observed is people are struggling to find a balance between work life and

personal life which is taking a toll on their overall well being (Smith, et al., 2006).

Another reason which could contribute to the decline in the mental health of a person

holding a leadership role in a workplace, would be whether the subordinates or followers are
reacting negatively to the decisions of the leaders (Kruisselbrink, 2013). This can lead to

demoralization of the leaders, and lead to greater mental health issues (Gabel, 2012).

In the end, there is currently a mental health crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most

students did not seek mental health support for something related to the pandemic, but ⅔ of

students reported that the pandemic affected their mental healthiness (Brown, 2021). In the

school system, buildings closed and forced students to be isolated from one another, which can

cause mental health to decline (Araújo et al., 2020). Though the causes of mental health

problems could be different, most of these end with the thought of suicide (Bellows, 2021).

Considering all of these possible causes for mental health decline, there was a significant

problem before the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only are people experiencing a mental health

decline, but most people are using the term “mental health” to describe general distress that they

do not know how to cope with (Brown, 2021). With that being said, how does the mental health

of student leaders on a college campus compare before and “after” the COVID-19 pandemic?

Within higher education, there are more social interaction opportunities provided than at

any other place or time. Researchers agree that social interaction is a large part of human life and

essential to being mentally healthy (Miller, 2005). Social interaction is not only a play date when

you are a little child but any face-to-face interaction with another human being. Social

interaction can not only prevent some mental health issues, but combat it in the moment. In some

workplaces there is social support given to people going through the effects of mental health in

the workplace (Gabel, 2012). This includes good and bad support systems and their requisite

actions. An example of bad support which can assist in the decline of mental health would be

alcohol consumption and sexual activity within universities (Kruisselbrink, 2013). With more

opportunities for social interaction in higher education, it is shown in leadership roles that the
social interaction between followers and leaders is detrimental to the mental health of both

groups (Montano, 2017). It has also been studied and observed that leadership effectiveness in

academia is measured by the success of the organization in performing tasks, accomplishing

goals, and in relating to the attitudes of others (Smith, et al., 2006). Through this, there seems to

be a gender gap where women feel excluded in social gatherings due to their gender and feel

they are not given equal opportunity to participate (Gardiner, et al., 1999). Even though it is

becoming more common that women are attending college, we are seeing gender discrimination

which is affecting mental health (Gardiner, et al., 1999).

Mental health is a crisis affecting many people today. One large factor could be the

COVID-19 pandemic (Araújo et al., 2020). It has been observed that throughout the duration of

this deadly pandemic, social interaction has decreased. Many schools decided to go online for all

or a portion of the 2020-2021 school year. Consequently, the effect of this decision was the lack

of social interaction between students at the schools due to isolation (Araújo et al., 2020). Social

interaction is part of human nature and can influence a person's mental stability. Leaders within

higher education are often very social people and crave social interaction. Knowing this raises

the question, how were leaders in higher education affected through the pandemic?

Having a good leader can shape the experience of any situation. This is why it is

important to have the correct leadership style for certain situations. Transformational leadership

is defined as: able to motivate followers to transcend their own self-interests for the sake of

organizational goals. Relations-oriented is: concern for the problems of subordinates,

participative leadership, conflict-solving abilities, and respect and support toward subordinates,

among others. Destructive leadership is classified as: one who violates social norms in the

organization or implies aggressiveness toward subordinates (Montano, 2017). These styles shape
how the followers view the leader. Although there is not one definition for each leadership style,

because someone can be a combination of many different ones. There appears to be no single,

concise definition that encompasses all of its various manifestations. ‘Transactional’ leaders are

those who focus on needs and rewards as sources of motivation, whereas ‘transformational’

leaders not only understand and recognize their followers’ needs but also attempt to raise those

needs to higher levels of motivation to enable people to fulfill their true potential (Smith, et al.,

2006). Not only do you need the correct leadership style to combat mental health, correct

decisions must be made (Smith, et al., 2006). A good leader comes together with other leaders to

make the correct decision, which is what is currently happening with the current mental health

crisis within higher education (Kruisselbrink, 2013).

A reason why we select good leaders is because of their ability to make a decision.

Through the pandemic, people have had to make crucial decisions which affect large groups of

people, but it has been observed that when people get nervous, their ability to make good,

well-thought decisions diminishes (Araújo et al., 2020). With regards to leadership, universities

had to make the choice to go online or stay in person (Araújo et al., 2020). Higher education

leaders have been placed under increased pressure for decades because of the increased federal

and state regulations, the pandemic heightened the tensions between the board of education and

the government (Kelderman, 2021). Since leadership positions take a toll on people; the thought

then is, if students are already struggling with school, how does holding a leadership position on

a college campus affect mental health?

Mental health is a conversation that has been explored to some extent, but could always

be expanded. Based on this information and the universal findings of past researchers, there are

many gaps in the research of mental health in higher education. One of those gaps includes
mental health research within higher education student leadership. Though some may not see

student leadership as such, it is a workplace where students are able to professionally develop

and prepare for life outside of college. With this in mind, it would be beneficial to conduct a

study within higher education with an emphasis in student leadership to bridge this gap.
 References

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