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. 2023 Jan 15:321:217-226.
doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.10.044. Epub 2022 Oct 28.

The mental health of university students in South Africa: Results of the national student survey

Jason Bantjes  1 , Molly Kessler  2 , Christine Lochner  3 , Elsie Breet  4 , Ahmed Bawa  5 , Janine Roos  6 , Charl Davids  7 , Memory Muturiki  8 , Ronald C Kessler  9 , Dan J Stein  10
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The mental health of university students in South Africa: Results of the national student survey

Jason Bantjes et al. J Affect Disord. .

Abstract

Background: We estimate 30-day prevalence of 11 common mental disorders among a representative sample of university students in South Africa and explore disparities in student mental health across historically segregated institutions and marginalised groups.

Methods: Cross-sectional data collected in self-report surveys of students (n = 28,268) from 17 universities were weighted to adjust for differences in survey responses. Poisson regression was used to estimate risk ratios (RRs).

Results: Prevalence estimates were highest (21.0-24.5 %) for two anxiety disorders (social anxiety disorder, PTSD) and two disruptive behavior disorders (eating disorder, ADHD). Prevalence estimates were higher for any anxiety disorder (37.1 %) and any disruptive behavior disorder (38.7 %) than for any mood disorder (16.3 %) or any substance use disorder (6.6 %). Prevalence estimates varied significantly by historical segregation status of institutions (F3 = 221.6, p < .001), with prevalence consistently highest in Historically White Institutions (HWIs). Across all institutions, risk of any disorder was lower among oldest than younger students (RR = 0.7, 95%CI = 0.7-0.8), and elevated among gender non-conforming (RR = 1.3, 95%CI = 1.1-1.4), female (RR = 1.2, 95%CI = 1.1-1.2), and sexual minority (RR = 1.2, 95%CI = 1.2-1.3) students. Black students attending HWIs had elevated risk of any disorder relative to White students.

Limitations: Reliance on self-report measures together with relatively low and variable response rates across institutions limit generalizability of results.

Conclusions: Modest risks associated with sociodemographic factors suggest a need to focus on mental health of female, gender nonconforming and sexual minority students at all universities along with Black students attending HWIs.

Keywords: Anxiety; Common mental disorders; Depression; Mental health; South Africa; University students.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: In the past 3 years, Dr. Kessler was a consultant for Cambridge Health Alliance, Canandaigua VA Medical Center, Holmusk, Partners Healthcare, Inc., RallyPoint Networks, Inc., and Sage Therapeutics. He has stock options in Cerebral Inc., Mirah, PYM, and Roga Sciences. The authors confirm that there are no other conflicts to declare.

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