Impact of resilience on college student mental health during COVID-19

Cognitive distortions as a mediator of the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and psychological distress among college students

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the mediating role of cognitive distortions (CDs) in the relationship between dispositional mindfulness (DM) and psychological distress, and considered gender as a potential moderator of these mediation models.

PARTICIPANTS

Four hundred and forty-six college students (63.9% female; M = 20.52 years; 87.4% undergraduate, 12.6% graduate level) participated.

METHODS

Self-report measures of DM, CDs, anxiety, depression, and perceived stress were completed with data collected from April to October of 2020.

RESULTS

Females scored significantly higher than males on anxiety, depression, perceived stress, and CDs. CDs partially mediated the relationship between DM and all psychological distress variables. Gender moderated the mediation model predicting anxiety, with the indirect effect of DM on anxiety via CDs being stronger for females than males.

CONCLUSION

Results support CDs as a possible mechanism underlying the association between DM and psychological distress with implications for targeting cognitive patterns in mindfulness-based interventions with college students.

Associations Between Healthy Behaviors and Persistently Favorable Self-Rated Health in a Longitudinal Population-Based Study in Switzerland

BACKGROUND

Self-rated health is a subjective yet valuable indicator of overall health status, influenced by various factors including physical, psychological, and socio-economic elements. Self-rated health could be telling and used by primary care physicians to evaluate overall present and predictive health.

DESIGN

This study investigates the longitudinal evolution of self-rated health in Switzerland during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the association of persistently favorable self-rated health with various predictors.

PARTICIPANTS

This study based on the Specchio cohort, a population-based digital study in Geneva Switzerland, involved participants completing questionnaires from 2021 to 2023.

MAIN MEASURES

Self-rated health was assessed alongside factors like physical and mental health, socio-economic status, and lifestyle behaviors.

KEY RESULTS

The study included 7006 participants in 2021, and 3888 participants who answered all three follow-ups (2021, 2022, and 2023). At baseline, 34.9% of individuals reported very good, 54.6% reported good, 9.6% reported average, and 1.0% reported poor to very poor self-rated health. Overall, 29.1% had a worsening in their self-rated health between 2021 and 2023. A subset of participants (12.1%) maintained very good self-rated health throughout, demonstrating persistently favorable self-rated health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Positive health behaviors were associated with persistently favorable self-rated health (exercise aOR 1.13 [1.03-1.24]; healthy diet aOR 2.14 [1.70-2.68]; less screen time aOR 1.28 [1.03-1.58]; and better sleep quality aOR 2.48 [2.02-3.04]). Mental health and social support also played significant roles.

CONCLUSION

The study underscores the significance of healthy lifestyle choices and social support in maintaining favorable self-rated health, particularly during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic. Primary care physicians should focus on promoting these factors, integrating these actions in their routine consultations, and advising patients to undertake in socially engaging activities to improve overall health perceptions and outcomes.

The role of resilience in the relationship between stress and alcohol

Stress plays a well-documented role in alcohol consumption and the risk for developing alcohol use disorder. The concept of resilience - coping with and successfully adapting to stressful life experiences - has received increasing attention in the field of addiction research in recent decades, and there has been an accumulation of evidence for resilience as a protective factor against problematic alcohol consumption, risk for alcohol use disorder, disorder severity, and relapse. The conceptual and methodological approaches used in the generation of this evidence vary considerably across investigations, however. In light of this, we carried out this review in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the meaning and scope of resilience, what factors contribute to resilience, how it is measured, and how it relates to alcohol-associated phenotypes. Implications for treatment through the use of resilience-building interventions are likewise discussed, as well as implications for future research on the role of resilience in the etiology and clinical outcomes of alcohol use disorder.

Mental health during COVID-19: College students' need for structure

Objective: College students made the unprecedented shift to remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, potentially contributing to escalating anxiety, depression, and suicide. This loss of structure may be a driving factor in students' distress. We examined the relationship between students' mental health, perceived need for structure, and five stressors related to COVID-19. Participants: Students (N = 1319, 76.3% female, 79.8% White) at a southeastern university responded to a survey in spring 2020. Methods: Participants answered questions about global anxiety and depression, suicide, perceived need for structure, and COVID-19 related stressors. Results: Participants reported increased anxiety and depression and elevated suicidality compared to previous studies of student mental health. Findings indicated that the stressors and lack of structure added unique variance toward predicting anxiety and depression. Conclusions: As COVID-19's consequences persist, counseling centers and other stakeholders are urged to work together in providing support for students' mental wellness and stress management.

Responding to multiple events in 2020: A qualitative study exploring areas of growth and development among California college students

In 2020, the US was consumed by the COVID-19 pandemic and racial justice protests. California was further compounded by a devastating fall wildfire season. Negative effects related to these events have been documented in research. Objective: This study sought to expand the literature by exploring areas of personal growth and development among college students with a lens on the impact of these three events. Methods: A diverse group of undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in a large public university system in California were recruited to participate in one of six focus groups held during the winter of 2020/2021 with 35 students. Findings: Thematic analysis was used to develop three themes: 1) experiencing fluctuation and repetition, 2) understanding myself and the world, and 3) finding hope and wanting action. Conclusions: Findings suggest opportunities for academic institutions to enhance critical thinking about contemporary issues and support students in developing skills to navigate change and transition successfully.

Psychological correlates of perceived loneliness in college students before and during the COVID-19 stay-at-home period: a longitudinal study

BACKGROUND

Loneliness is increasingly acknowledged as a serious public health issue. This longitudinal study aimed to assess the extent to which psychological distress and alexithymia can predict loneliness among Italian college students before and one year after the COVID-19 outbreak.

METHODS

A convenience sample of 177 psychology college students were recruited. Loneliness (UCLA), alexithymia (TAS-20), anxiety symptoms (GAD-7), depressive symptoms (PHQ-9), and somatic symptoms (PHQ-15) were assessed before the COVID-19 outbreak and one year after the spread of COVID-19 worldwide.

RESULTS

After controlling for baseline loneliness, students with high levels of loneliness during lockdown showed worsening psychological distress and alexithymic traits over time. Suffering from depressive symptoms before COVID-19 and the aggravation of alexithymic traits independently predicted 41% of perceived loneliness during the COVID-19 outbreak.

CONCLUSIONS

College students with higher levels of depression and alexithymic traits both before and one year after the lockdown were more at risk of suffering from perceived loneliness and may constitute the target sample for psychological support and intervention.

Resilience and alcohol use in adulthood in the United States: A scoping review

High levels of alcohol use and the development of alcohol use disorder (AUD) are associated with various adverse consequences. Resilience has been proposed as a protective factor against increased alcohol use, though the existing research is limited by inconsistencies in the conceptualization and measurement of resilience. As such, the current scoping review examined 14 studies on individual, trait-level resilience as a protective factor against alcohol use and related consequences in adults over the age of 21 in the United States. Findings from the included studies generally suggest resilience as a protective factor against various outcomes, though methodological limitations should be considered. Although future research in this area should improve upon methodological limitations, the present review suggests clinical implications of resilience as beneficial in prevention and intervention programming for alcohol use outcomes.

Early life influences on the development of food addiction in college attending young adults

PURPOSE

There is little investigation into the causes of food addiction. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of early life influences on the development of food addiction in college-attending young adults aged 18-29.

METHODS

This study utilized a sequential explanatory mixed-methods research design. College-attending young adults were invited to complete an online survey measuring Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), food addiction, depression, anxiety, stress, and demographic information. Correlations between food addiction and the other variables were analyzed and significant variables were placed into a nominal logistic regression model to predict the development of food addiction. Participants who met the criteria for food addiction were invited to participate in interviews to examine their childhood eating environment and when their symptoms emerged. Interviews were transcribed and thematically analyzed. Quantitative analysis was conducted using JMP Pro Version 16.0 and qualitative analysis was conducted using NVIVO Software Version 12.0.

RESULTS

Survey respondents (n = 1645) had an overall 21.9% prevalence of food addiction. Significant correlations were observed between food addiction and ACEs, depression, anxiety, stress, and sex (p < .01 for all). Depression was the only significant predictor of the development of food addiction (OR = 3.33 95% CI 2.19, 5.05). The most common eating environment described by interview participants (n = 36) was an emphasis on diet culture, ideal body image, and restrictive environments. Symptoms frequently emerged after transitioning into college and having the ability to make their own food choices.

CONCLUSION

These results show the impact of early life eating environments and young adulthood mental health on the development of food addiction. These findings contribute to the understanding of underlying causes of food addiction.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level V, Opinions of authorities, based on descriptive studies, narrative reviews, clinical experience, or reports of expert committees.

Self-Rated Health and Life Satisfaction among Elderly Migrants in China: A Moderated Mediation Model of Resilience and Upward Intergenerational Support

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to test whether resilience mediates the association between self-rated health and life satisfaction and the moderated effect of upward intergenerational support among elderly migrants in China.

METHOD

We used self-reported data collected from 654 elderly migrants in Nanjing. The regression analysis using bootstrapping methods was conducted to explore the mediating and moderating effects.

RESULTS

Resilience mediated the relationship between self-rated health and life satisfaction among elderly migrants in China. The moderated mediation analysis indicated that the upward intergenerational support moderated the path between self-rated health and resilience. Specifically, compared with those with a low level of emotional support, the self-rated health of elderly migrants with a high level of emotional support has a stronger effect on resilience. Moreover, the self-rated health of elderly migrants with a low level of financial support has a stronger effect on resilience than those with a higher level of financial support.

CONCLUSION

Resilience could partially mediate the effect of self-rated health on life satisfaction among elderly migrants in China, and upward intergenerational support moderated the indirect relationship between self-rated health and life satisfaction via resilience.

The intervention effect of mental health knowledge integrated into ideological and political teaching on college students’ employment and entrepreneurship mentality

In order to analyze the intervention effect of integrating mental health knowledge into ideological and political teaching on college students’ employment and entrepreneurship mentality, this paper proposes a study to predict the effect of integrated intervention. This research mainly investigates the ideological and psychological conditions of college students from divorced families through questionnaires, compares and analyzes the classification and statistical results of the survey data between groups and within groups, and analyzes the reasons for the ideological and psychological problems of college students. The experimental results show that 30% of college students from divorced families and college students from non-divorced families responded that they do not feel comfortable in places with many people, and the difference between the groups is not significant. Regarding the concept of entrepreneurship, 64.63% of college students from divorced families in urban areas believe that entrepreneurship is a form of learning and should be encouraged. 63.27% of college students from divorced families in rural areas believe that learning should be the first priority and that a business should not be started. 20.41% of college students from divorced families in rural areas and 25.61% of college students from divorced families in urban areas believe that because entrepreneurship provides economic income, it can reduce the burden on families, but the difference is not obvious. In short, this study can provide reference for the ideological and psychological status of college students from divorced families.

The Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Postsecondary Students: An Analysis of Self-Determination

The COVID-19 pandemic has put postsecondary students across the world at risk of psychological distress, negatively impacting their basic psychological well-being, including self-determination. Although the concept of self-determination has been widely discussed in literature, it is poorly understood within the context of postsecondary students during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to examine the concept of self-determination (SD) as it relates to postsecondary students amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Rodgers' evolutionary method of concept analysis was used. PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and ERIC were electronically searched using the keywords "postsecondary students" "coronavirus pandemic" and "self-determination." The historical, legal, educational, and health science literature were investigated to generate a holistic definition of SD in the past. This analysis has identified the antecedents, attributes, and consequences of self-determination in postsecondary students during this global health crisis. This analysis adds to the knowledge base regarding the evolution, significance, and application of the concept of SD in the context of postsecondary students amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Implications for future research were also explored, such as using strategies to promote SD in postsecondary students to develop resilience during the pandemic.

A Decade of College Student Hunger: What We Know and Where We Need to Go

The first article on college food insecurity, published in 2009, sparked conversation on the dark secret many students face while seeking a college degree; they do not have secure access to food. Over 10 years later, numerous investigators around the globe have reported on the heightened prevalence of college food insecurity, the correlates that increase risk, and the detrimental outcomes associated with not having a secure source of food. In this manuscript, we describe the decade of research devoted to college food insecurity and provide direction for research, programs, and policies moving forward. Replicable and valid data collection methods must be utilized, campus-based program evaluation implemented and disseminated, and evidence-based policies supported to achieve realistic goals of warding off hunger and food insecurity on college campuses as well as improve the lives of individuals after post-secondary education. Collectively, stakeholders on college campuses as well as off-campus advocates can be the catalyst to creating a nutritionally secure environment and it is imperative that food insecurity be prevented on college campuses to ensure college students are able to achieve degree attainment.