Neuroscience-Inspired, Behavioral Change Program for University Students

Pattern, barriers, and predictors of mental health care utilization among Egyptian undergraduates: a cross-sectional multi-centre study

BACKGROUND

Mental health disorders are a major public health concern especially among undergraduates, globally and within Egypt. Most individuals suffering from mental illnesses either do not seek care at all or seek it only after a large delay. It is therefore critical to identify the barriers that prevent them from seeking professional help to solve the problem from its roots. Thus, the objectives of the study were to assess the prevalence of psychological distress, the need for professional mental health care, and the barriers to seeking available services among undergraduate students in Egypt.

METHODS

A proportionate allocation technique was used to recruit 3240 undergraduates from 21 universities. Symptoms of psychological distress were evaluated using the Arabic General Health Questionnaire (AGHQ-28) and a score of above nine was used to identify positive cases. The pattern for utilization of mental health care was assessed using a multi-choice question and barriers to mental health care were assessed using the Barriers to Access to Care Evaluation (BACE- 30) tool. Logistic regression was adopted to identify the predictors of psychological distress and seeking professional health care.

RESULTS

The prevalence of psychological distress was 64.7% and the need for professional mental health care was 90.3% of those with psychological distress. The top barrier to receiving professional mental health services was wanting to solve the problem on their own. Logistic regression revealed that female sex, living away from family and positive family history of mental disorders were independent predictors of psychological distress. Students from urban backgrounds were more likely to seek help than students from rural ones. While age above 20 and positive family history of mental disorders were independent predictors for seeking professional help. There is no significant difference between medical and non-medical students in terms of psychological distress.

CONCLUSION

The findings of the study showed there is a high prevalence of psychological distress and a lot of instrumental and attitudinal related barriers to seeking mental health care and highlighted the urgent need to develop interventions and preventive strategies to address the mental health of university students.

A feasibility study on a novel well-being intervention for university students

OBJECTIVES

Challenging transitions, increased stress and mental ill health can affect students' academic performance and their capacity to remain in higher education. Prevention and early treatment of mental health problems in college students is therefore a key public health priority, nationally and internationally. Developing a range of evidence-based interventions targeting the mental health of students is critical. We examined the feasibility and acceptability of a new universal time use and well-being intervention, the 'Everyday Matters: Healthy Habits for University Life' digital badge (EMDB), a co-curricular micro-credential for first-year college students.

METHODS

This study used a single-arm, pre-post design for first-year undergraduate students. The EMDB comprised eight 1-hour lunchtime sessions on brain development and time-use habits across the 24 hours of the day including sleep, self-care, leisure, study and work. Validated measures of occupational competence and value, mental well-being, sleep health, mindset, self-compassion and gratitude were completed, along with an evaluation questionnaire.

RESULTS

Eight first-year undergraduate students completed the demographic questionnaire and pre- and post- measures, with one additional student completing only the evaluation questionnaire. There was significantly improved levels of well-being, self-compassion and growth mindset following the intervention. Many of the challenges reported by participants related to occupational issues such as managing finances and having a satisfying routine. Participants appreciated the practical relevance and scientific underpinnings of the programme content. The sense of belonging within the group and having insightful conversations with other group members were particularly valued by participants.

CONCLUSIONS

This study offers preliminary evidence that an occupational therapy based universal time-use and well-being intervention was feasible to deliver and acceptable to first-year undergraduate students. The results of this study and the participant acceptability support further development and evaluation of the EMDB intervention.

Helping students cope with adversity: the influence of a web-based intervention on students' self-efficacy and intentions to use wellness-related resources

To investigate the effects of an online wellness intervention on college students' self-efficacy, intentions to seek help, general resilience and whether adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) act as a moderating variable. Participants: Three-hundred and eighty-two undergraduate students. Method: Students were assigned to two conditions: treatment or control. The treatment group participated in an online intervention designed to enhance student wellness, the control group did not. Both groups completed an online questionnaire. Results: Students exposed to the intervention reported greater self-efficacy, a higher likelihood to engage in self-help activities and greater intention to use campus resources. Additionally, among students with more ACEs, those who were exposed to the site were more likely to recommend resources. Conclusion: The online intervention presented here may be an effective tool to reduce barriers for students seeking help for mental health and may increase student wellness.

Personality trait predictors of adjustment during the COVID pandemic among college students

Personality traits have been found to be related to a variety of health outcomes. The aim of this study was to examine how personality traits were associated with adjustment to the COVID pandemic in college students. The sample included 484 first-year university students (76% female) attending a northeastern university who completed the Big Five Inventory (BFI) personality assessment at the beginning of a semester that was disrupted by the COVID pandemic. Using a phone-based app, students completed daily ratings of mood, perceived stress levels, and engagement in a number of health promotion activities (exercise, mindfulness, adequate sleep, etc.) throughout the semester both before and after the onset of the pandemic (e.g., a within-person longitudinal design). Results, as expected, showed that mood and wellness indices generally declined during the COVID period, although stress levels actually decreased. Further, irrespective of COVID, improved mood, less perceived stress and greater participation in health promotion activities were significantly associated with a number of personality traits including neuroticism (lower), extraversion (higher), agreeableness (higher), and conscientiousness (higher). Of primary interest, mixed-effects models were used to test how major personality traits interacted with any changes in daily ratings from the pre-COVID to COVID period. Significant interactions terms were found suggesting differential impacts of the COVID epidemic for students with low versus high levels of particular traits. Higher levels of extraversion, for example, were found to be related to decreases in mood as the pandemic progressed in contrast to those with lower extraversion, for whom there was a slight increase in mood over time. These data support the conclusion that personality traits are related to mental health and can play a role in a person's ability to cope with major stressful events. Different traits may also be more adaptive to different types of stressors.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on College Student Mental Health and Wellness

OBJECTIVE

To test the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID) pandemic on the emotions, behavior, and wellness behaviors of first-year college students.

METHOD

A total of 675 first-year university students completed a full assessment of behavioral and emotional functioning at the beginning of the spring semester 2020. Of these, 576 completed the same assessment at the end of the spring semester, 600 completed at least 1 item from a COVID-related survey after the onset of COVID pandemic, and 485 completed nightly surveys of mood and wellness behaviors on a regular basis before and after the onset of the COVID crisis.

RESULTS

Externalizing problems (mean = -0.19, 95% CI = -0.06 to 0.33, p = .004) and attention problems (mean = -0.60, 95% CI = -0.40 to 0.80, p < .001) increased after the onset of COVID, but not internalizing symptoms (mean = 0.18, 95% CI = -0.1 to 0.38, p = .06). Students who were enrolled in a campus wellness program were less affected by COVID in terms of internalizing symptoms (β = 0.40, SE = 0.21, p = .055) and attention problems (β = 0.59, SE = 0.21, p = .005) than those who were not in the wellness program. Nightly surveys of both mood (β = -0.10, SE = 0.03, p = .003) and daily wellness behaviors (β = -0.06, SE = 0.03, p = .036), but not stress (β = 0.02, SE = 0.03, p = .58), were negatively affected by the COVID crisis. The overall magnitude of these COVID-related changes were modest but persistent across the rest of the semester and different from patterns observed in a prior year.

CONCLUSION

COVID and associated educational/governmental mitigation strategies had a modest but persistent impact on mood and wellness behaviors of first-year university students. Colleges should prepare to address the continued mental health impacts of the pandemic.

The University of Vermont Wellness Environment: Feasibility and Initial Results of a College Undergraduate Health-Promoting Program

The University of Vermont Wellness Environment program is a neuroscience-inspired, incentive-based behavioral change program designed to improve health and academic outcomes in college-age students. The program uses health promotion and illness prevention delivered in classrooms, residential halls, and via a customized App that incentivizes healthy behaviors and monitors the use of health-promoting activities. This article presents feasibility data on participation of college students in ongoing data collection about key outcomes related to health and well-being. The data collection component were easily implemented in college students and yielded high-quality data.

A Trauma-Informed Approach to Building College Students' Resilience

PURPOSE

This paper describes the development of a new psychoeducational universal prevention resilience program ( https://strong.fsu.edu ) designed to complement existing mental health services at a large public university. The first set of descriptive data (n = 229) from the project's student surveys is discussed.

METHODS

A voluntary and anonymous online questionnaire was used to determine student attitudes toward the new program.

RESULTS

A large majority of participants (more than 80%) perceived the website to be credible, rating it as believable, trustworthy, and accurate. 90% believe the university resources included in the project would help themselves and others overcome struggles and challenges. Other results are also discussed.

DISCUSSION

This data from a unique project shows the promise of using an online, integrative tool for a campus resilience initiative. The project is dynamic; analysis of student responses will inform ongoing revisions and refinements.

Using latent transition analysis to compare effects of residency status on alcohol-related consequences during the first two years of college

The current study examined two research aims: (1) Identify latent statuses of college students who share common patterns of single or repeated experiences with distinct types of negative alcohol-related consequences during the first two years of college; and (2) Examine how changes in students' living arrangements were associated with transitions in the consequence statuses. Using a sample of college student drinkers (N = 1706), four latent statuses were identified that distinguished among distinct combinations of single and repeated experiences across the multiple consequence subtypes: No Consequences, Physical Non-Repeaters, Multiple Consequences, and Multiple Consequences Repeaters. Students who remained in on-campus living spaces were most likely to belong to lower-risk statuses at T1, and remain in those statuses at T2. We found that moving into Greek housing had strongest effects among students who started in the No Consequences status, while students who moved to off-campus housing were most likely to remain in the Multiple Consequences status. Given that students who moved out of on-campus residences were more likely to transition into high-risk statuses, interventions that target students who intend to move to off-campus or fraternity housing should be implemented during the first year of college.