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. 2021 Feb 1;280(Pt A):7-10.
doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2020.11.032. Epub 2020 Nov 11.

Mental health of college students during the COVID-19 epidemic in China

Wenning Fu  1 , Shijiao Yan  2 , Qiao Zong  3 , Dan Anderson-Luxford  4 , Xingyue Song  5 , Zhiyue Lv  6 , Chuanzhu Lv  7
Affiliations

Mental health of college students during the COVID-19 epidemic in China

Wenning Fu et al. J Affect Disord. .

Abstract

Objectives: To assess the psychological status of college students in China during the COVID-19 outbreak, and offer some theoretical evidence for psychological intervention of college students.

Methods: An online survey was conducted from May 10, 2020 to June 10, 2020. Anxiety symptoms were measured by the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-Item Scale (GAD-7). Categorical data were reported as number and percentage, while continuous data were reported as mean ± SD. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between different factors and anxiety symptoms.

Results: A total of 89,588 college students participated in the current study, among which 36,865 students (41.1%) reported anxiety symptoms. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the risk factors for anxiety symptoms included the age of 26-30 (OR=1.456), sophomore (OR=1.038), junior (OR=1.087) and senior grades (OR=1.161), a higher paternal education level (OR=1.055), low economic status (OR=1.520), and low social support (OR=1.542).

Conclusions: About two-fifths of Chinese college students experienced anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 epidemic. Timely and appropriate psychological interventions for college students should be implemented to reduce the psychological harm caused by COVID-19 epidemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; China; College Students; Mental Health.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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