Social network analysis for assessing college-aged adults' health: A systematic review

An egocentric network analysis of U.S. college students' recollection of mental health symptoms and social connections during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: This study analyzes pandemic-era diminished mental health and social connections among college students. Participants: Students of a large public university completed an online survey measuring self-reported mental health symptoms for themselves and that of their closest social connections. Methods: Three regression models were used to understand if pandemic-era diminished mental health was associated with mental health characteristics present among their social networks: (1) depressive symptoms, (2) loneliness, and (3) hopelessness. Results: Students experiencing depressive symptoms (R2 = 0.13, F = 3.685, p < 0.001) perceived depressive symptoms (β = 0.32, p = 0.01) among their social connections. Students experiencing loneliness (R2 = 0.13, F = 3.867, p < 0.001) perceived loneliness (β = 0.39, p = 0.02) among their social connections. Students experiencing hopelessness (R2 = 0.14, F = 4.223, p < 0.001) perceived depressive symptoms (β = 0.35, p = 0.01) among their social connections. Conclusion: Social connections may influence mental health symptoms and could be a social determinant of certain mental health outcomes.

Self-efficacy in health among university students: the role of social support and place

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to better understand the role of students' living arrangements (on campus, off campus, with and without their parents) on their health self-efficacy.

PARTICIPANTS

A sample of undergraduate students (n = 216) were recruited by using word of mouth and visiting classrooms in a small Atlantic Canadian university.

METHODS

Participants completed a self-report questionnaire measuring health and sleep self-efficacy. Analyses of variance and covariance were used to compare the living arrangements of the students.

RESULTS

Differences between living arrangements were found. Students living on campus had higher health self-efficacy, particularly on the psychological well-being subscale, followed by those living off campus with their parents. Students living off campus without their parents had the lowest scores.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrated that health self-efficacy varies according to students' living situations, thus illustrating the importance of keeping students' living arrangements in mind when designing health and well-being interventions.

Egocentric network composition and structure relative to violence victimization among a sample of college students

ObjectiveTo use egocentric network analysis to understand how composition and structure of egonetworks relate to violence victimization among college students. Participants: 697 students from a large southeastern university completed online surveys. Methods: Hierarchical logistic regression analyses assessed the relationship between egocentric network variables and a history of violence victimization. Results: Being connected to others with a history of violence victimization increased a student's odds of indicating their own history of physical, emotional, and sexual violence victimization. Having less dense egonetworks was related to sexual violence victimization, while being connected to less people of the same gender was related to emotional violence victimization. Conclusion: The way college students' networks are composed and structured could help in understanding violence victimization in this population, and should be considered in prevention and reactionary efforts on campuses. These findings add to the current literature largely focused on individual-level risk factors related to violence.

Social Influence on Fad Diet Use: A Systematic Literature Review

Background: A fad diet is a broad term used to describe dieting methods that recommend altering the intake of macronutrients to specific proportions or instruct people to intake or avoid particular foods, often with the goal of rapid weight loss. Previous literature reviews report social influence impacts general diet behaviour, but have yet to examine fad diets, specifically. Therefore, the purpose of this systematic review was to synthesize literature related to social influence on an individual's fad diet use and understand the sociocultural factors related to diet use. Methods: Using PRISMA guidelines, Medline, PsycInfo, Embase, CINAHL, and CENTRAL databases were searched to identify articles investigating the impact of social on fad diet use. Covidence was used to manage the review process and Garrard's Matrix Method was used to extract data from reviewed articles (n   =   13). Results: A majority of reviewed studies examined interpersonal influence (62%) and reported social influence impacting a variety of fad diet behaviours (92%). Interpersonal and media influence were highlighted as motivating factors for adopting unhealthy dieting methods (54%), and studies showed interpersonal support impacted adoption and maintenance of fad diet use (23%). Also, social norms were reported to influence unhealthy weight control behaviours (15%). Discussion: This review revealed social influence is associated with the adoption, adherence, and termination of fad diets. The prevalence of fad diets in society and the lack of research on this topic warrants further examination of factors related to fad diets use and the spread among interpersonal networks.

The association between social network members sharing alcohol-related social media content and alcohol outcomes among college student drinkers

BACKGROUND

College-aged young adults (e.g., 18 to 29-year-olds) use social media more than any other age group. An emerging body of literature shows that higher exposure to alcohol-related social media content is associated with greater alcohol consumption among college students. However, most studies assess exposure to peer drinking on social media using global measures, rather than measuring the exposure to alcohol-related posts of identified specific close peers. We examined whether having a higher proportion of important peers (i.e., social network members) who post alcohol-related social media content is associated with greater alcohol consumption and alcohol-related consequences. We also investigated the extent to which the qualities of network members who share alcohol-related content are associated with participants' alcohol outcomes.

METHODS

Participants were 130 college students (86.2% female, 56.9% White) with an average age of 23.39 years (SD = 5.63) who had consumed at least one alcoholic drink in the past week. Participants completed measures of their social media use, alcohol consumption, alcohol-related consequences, and characteristics of important peers in their social network, including their alcohol-related social media posting.

RESULTS

Having a higher proportion of social network members who post alcohol-related social media content was positively related to participants' drinks per week and peak number of drinks. Higher network proportions of drinking buddies posting alcohol-related content were also associated with a greater frequency of alcohol use. Having a higher proportion of friends who post alcohol content and from whom the participants seek advice was linked to more alcohol-related consequences.

CONCLUSIONS

Having more important peers who post alcohol-related content on social media is associated with alcohol outcomes among college students. Harm-reduction focused alcohol interventions delivered on college campuses that incorporate information about the influence of viewing and sharing alcohol-related content could help to reduce alcohol consumption and alcohol-related consequences among students.

Associations Between Sexual Assault Victimization and Risky Drinking Within College Women's Personal Networks

Within a sample of college women, this study assessed if an individual's (i.e., ego) history of sexual assault was related to her connecting with risky drinkers, and if her social contacts (i.e., alters) who had experienced sexual assault were also people who engaged in risky drinking. Results suggest ego's history of sexual assault was associated with her connecting to risky drinkers. Generally, egos reported alters who experienced sexual assault were more likely to drink in higher quantities, except when the ego and alter both had experienced sexual assault. Findings highlight the importance of social connections for survivors of sexual assault.

An evaluation of homesickness in children: A systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

To provide a systematic review and meta-analysis of the quantitative literature on homesickness in children, including how it is assessed and relationship to other negative states.

STUDY SELECTION AND SYNTHESIS

A literature search was conducted using Medline, PsychINFO and Scopus databases. Studies were included if they assessed homesickness in children under eighteen years of age and were published in peer reviewed journals in the English language between 1990 and December 2020. A total of 176 studies were screened for relevance and 17 met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review with five studies included in the meta-analysis.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

The primary outcome measure was homesickness severity, and it was examined in relation to measures of depression and anxiety. The literature in relation to known risk and protective factors was also reviewed.

RESULTS

Homesickness was reported in the majority of children who were separated from their home. It was associated with negative emotional states. A total of seventeen studies were included in the quantitative review. The meta-analysis showed a significant relationship between homesickness and depression r=0.431 (95% CI 0.344-0.510; p<0.001) and homesickness and anxiety r=0.426 (95% CI 0.369-0.479; p<0.001). Age was not a significant moderator of homesickness severity. Consideration of effective interventions to address homesickness was limited.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Homesickness significantly impacts children's well-being regardless of age and is associated with overall distress, depression and anxiety. Future studies are required to examine homesickness interventions and supports to improve well-being in children.

Assessing Social Network Influences on Adult Physical Activity Using Social Network Analysis: A Systematic Review

OBJECTIVE

Social network analysis (SNA) can measure social connectedness and assess impact of interpersonal connections on health behaviors, including physical activity (PA). This paper aims to systematically review adult PA studies using SNA to understand important social network concepts relative to PA.

DATA SOURCE

A search was performed using PsycINFO, MEDLINE, PubMed, and Web of Science.

STUDY INCLUSION AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA

To be included in the search, articles needed to 1) include a measure of PA, 2) conduct an SNA in which specific relationships were measured, and 3) conduct an analysis between social network measures and PA.

DATA EXTRACTION

Key study elements including network design and results were extracted.

DATA SYNTHESIS

Data were synthesized to answer 2 questions: 1) how has adult PA been investigated using SNA approaches and 2) how is an adult's social network associated with PA behaviors?

RESULTS

A final sample of 28 articles remained from an initial 11 085 articles. Network size, homophily, network composition, and network exposure to PA were all associated with individual level PA across studies. Lastly, longitudinal and intervention studies showed a more complex picture of social influence and diffusion of PA behavior.

CONCLUSIONS

Adults' PA behaviors are influenced by their networks. Capitalizing on this influence, researchers should engage not just individual behavior change but also the social influences present within the person's life.

Active Play Network Influences on Physical Activity Among Children Living in Texas Colonias

Physical activity (PA) is beneficial for child health; however, few children meet PA guidelines. Social relationships impact child PA behaviors; however, little is known about this effect in Mexican-heritage populations. This study aims to understand associations between self-reported play networks and PA among Mexican-heritage children. Mexican-heritage children from colonias along the Texas-Mexico border (n = 44; 54.5% girls; mean age = 9.89 years, SD = 0.97) reported information on up to 5 people they played with most often. Linear regression was used to analyze the relationship between composition of children's social network and minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity PA (MVPA) and sedentary minutes per day measured by accelerometers. Children who reported a higher percentage of friends as opposed to family members attained significantly more minutes of MVPA per day (β = .27, P = .04). Children who reported playing with individuals in their network more often (β = ‒.28, P = .03) were sedentary for fewer minutes per day. Increasing the connections between children in the neighborhood or community, as well as increasing a child's frequency of active play, may be promising approaches to increasing MVPA and decreasing sedentary behaviors among Mexican-heritage children.

Using Multimodal Assessments to Capture Personalized Contexts of College Student Well-being in 2020: Case Study

Background

The year 2020 has been challenging for many, particularly for young adults who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Emerging adulthood is a developmental phase with significant changes in the patterns of daily living; it is a risky phase for the onset of major mental illness. College students during the pandemic face significant risk, potentially losing several protective factors (eg, housing, routine, social support, job, and financial security) that are stabilizing for mental health and physical well-being. Individualized multiple assessments of mental health, referred to as multimodal personal chronicles, present an opportunity to examine indicators of health in an ongoing and personalized way using mobile sensing devices and wearable internet of things.

Objective

To assess the feasibility and provide an in-depth examination of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on college students through multimodal personal chronicles, we present a case study of an individual monitored using a longitudinal subjective and objective assessment approach over a 9-month period throughout 2020, spanning the prepandemic period of January through September.

Methods

The individual, referred to as Lee, completed psychological assessments measuring depression, anxiety, and loneliness across 4 time points in January, April, June, and September. We used the data emerging from the multimodal personal chronicles (ie, heart rate, sleep, physical activity, affect, behaviors) in relation to psychological assessments to understand patterns that help to explicate changes in the individual’s psychological well-being across the pandemic.

Results

Over the course of the pandemic, Lee’s depression severity was highest in April, shortly after shelter-in-place orders were mandated. His depression severity remained mildly severe throughout the rest of the months. Associations in positive and negative affect, physiology, sleep, and physical activity patterns varied across time periods. Lee’s positive affect and negative affect were positively correlated in April (r=0.53, P=.04) whereas they were negatively correlated in September (r=–0.57, P=.03). Only in the month of January was sleep negatively associated with negative affect (r=–0.58, P=.03) and diurnal beats per minute (r=–0.54, P=.04), and then positively associated with heart rate variability (resting root mean square of successive differences between normal heartbeats) (r=0.54, P=.04). When looking at his available contextual data, Lee noted certain situations as supportive coping factors and other situations as potential stressors.

Conclusions

We observed more pandemic concerns in April and noticed other contextual events relating to this individual’s well-being, reflecting how college students continue to experience life events during the pandemic. The rich monitoring data alongside contextual data may be beneficial for clinicians to understand client experiences and offer personalized treatment plans. We discuss benefits as well as future directions of this system, and the conclusions we can draw regarding the links between the COVID-19 pandemic and college student mental health.

A social network approach to analyzing body dissatisfaction among sorority members using two network generators

Objective: This article uses social network analysis (SNA) to analyze how various measures of social connectedness relate to body dissatisfaction (BD) in sorority members.Participants: 208 sorority members participated in the study.Methods: Measures of social connectedness (network variables) were created based on two relational networks: persons members felt closest to and persons they spent the most time with. SNA tested whether demographic variables, body mass index (BMI), compulsive exercise, and network variables were related to BD in both networks.Results: Members reported BD was related to less social connectedness in the "close-to" and the "time-spent" networks, although specific network variables varied between the two. Compulsive exercise, BMI, and grade classification were related to BD in both networks.Conclusions: How a sorority member connects to others in her network could impact BD in this population. This study supports efforts facilitating increased social connection within a sorority as a means to decrease BD.

College Students' Perceptions of Peer Alcohol Use: A Social Network Analytic Approach

Traditional measures attempting to capture students' perceptions of peer drinking fail to capture the unique social influence of their most proximal peers. Purpose: This study presents egocentric social network data assessing the relationship between students' personal drinking behaviors and those of their closest social ties. Methods: 697 college students participated in the study by reporting on demographic information, alcohol use (AUDIT scores), and egocentric networks. Hierarchical linear regression assessed whether egocentric network variables uniquely predicted personal alcohol use, controlling for age, gender, race/ethnicity, and Greek-life affiliation. Results: Students with higher AUDIT scores were more likely to nominate persons close to them that engaged in more frequent, higher quantity drinking, and were also likely to mirror drinking behaviors to that of their close ties. Conclusion: Future studies should utilize SNA to capture the nuance associated with individuals' perceptions of close others' alcohol use and their own drinking behaviors. Interventions aimed at reducing collegiate drinking should consider the interpersonal nature of drinking behaviors among college student networks.

Network Analysis of the Social Environment Relative to Preference for and Tolerance of Exercise Intensity in CrossFit Gyms

Known for its ability to improve fitness and health, high-intensity functional training (HIFT) focuses on functional movements completed at high intensities, often yielding outcomes superior to repetitive aerobic workouts. Preference for and tolerance of high-intensity exercise are associated with enjoyment of and adherence to HIFT. Similarly, the social environment present within CrossFit, a popular group-based HIFT modality, is important to the enjoyment of and adherence to HIFT. This study aimed to test whether preference and tolerance were related to social connections within CrossFit networks. Linear network autocorrelation models (LNAMs) and exponential random graph models (ERGMs) were computed on sociometric and attribute data from members of three CrossFit networks (n = 197). LNAMs showed the preference and tolerance scores of someone's social connections were associated with their own in all three gyms, and ERGMs demonstrated preference and tolerance scores were associated with the presence of social ties within all networks. This study is the first to provide evidence for a relationship between social connections and preference and tolerance. Future longitudinal research is needed to determine if the social environment may influence and optimize a person's preference of and tolerance for HIFT.

Social Network Analysis in Child and Adolescent Physical Activity Research: A Systematic Literature Review

BACKGROUND

Regular physical activity (PA) has many benefits for children and adolescents, yet many do not meet PA recommendations. Social context is important for promoting or discouraging PA among children and adolescents. This review aimed to identify social network variables related to PA among children and adolescents.

METHODS

A systematic review of the literature was conducted in September 2018 using PsycINFO, MEDLINE, PubMed, and Web of Science. Included articles needed to (1) be focused on children (aged 5-11 y) or adolescents (aged 12-17 y), (2) include a measure of PA, (3) include a measure of egocentric or sociocentric social connection in which alters were nominated, and (4) perform an analysis between network data and PA.

RESULTS

A search of 11,824 articles was refined to a final sample of 29 articles. Social network themes and concepts such as homophily, centrality, and network composition were related to child and adolescent PA behavior across the literature.

CONCLUSIONS

The impact of an individual's social network is evident on their PA behaviors. More research is needed to examine why these networks form in relation to PA and how interventions can utilize social network analysis to more effectively promote PA, especially in underserved and minority populations.

EgoVis: A Visual Analysis System for Social Networks Based on Egocentric Research

The development of crowd intelligence makes the structure of social network more complex and changeable. Research on social network should be more in-depth and focus on the changes of structure. Ego-network, which represents the relationship between specific individual and the related people, is a hot issue among the research of dynamic social network. The evolution of ego-network is highly dynamic and pluralistic, it is hard to capture its evolutionary pattern over time. To help users analyze the individual characteristics and hidden patterns in multivariate ego-network, we present EgoVis, an interactive visual analysis system for exploring and analyzing complex structural relationships in dynamic network. Based on the task requirements of network evolution analysis, we propose a task taxonomy which is suitable for ego-network research and analysis, design novel visual fonts, and analyze the evolution of dynamic ego-network relations from the three dimensions: overview, subgroup, and detail-ego. Finally, the validity and practicability of EgoVis are verified on DBLP citation network dataset.