Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Feb 24;20(5):4071.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph20054071.

Mental Health and COVID-19 in University Students: Findings from a Qualitative, Comparative Study in Italy and the UK

Ilaria Riboldi  1 , Chiara Alessandra Capogrosso  1 , Susanna Piacenti  1 , Angela Calabrese  1 , Susanna Lucini Paioni  1 , Francesco Bartoli  1 , Cristina Crocamo  1 , Giuseppe Carrà  1   2 , Jo Armes  3 , Cath Taylor  3
Affiliations

Mental Health and COVID-19 in University Students: Findings from a Qualitative, Comparative Study in Italy and the UK

Ilaria Riboldi et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Introduction: COVID-19 restrictions introduced several changes in university academic and social experience. Self-isolation and online teaching have amplified students' mental health vulnerability. Thus, we aimed to explore feelings and perspectives about the impact of the pandemic on mental health, comparing students from Italy and the UK.

Methods: Data were collected from the qualitative portion of "the CAMPUS study", longitudinally assessing mental health of students at the University of Milano-Bicocca (Italy) and the University of Surrey (UK). We conducted in-depth interviews and thematically analysed the transcripts.

Results: The explanatory model was developed from four themes identified across 33 interviews: anxiety exacerbated by COVID-19; putative mechanisms leading to poor mental health; the most vulnerable subgroups; and coping strategies. Generalised and social anxiety resulted from COVID-19 restrictions by being associated with loneliness, excessive time online, unhealthy management of time and space and poor communication with the university. Freshers, international students, and people on the extremes of the introversion/extroversion spectrum, were identified as vulnerable, while effective coping strategies included taking advantage of free time, connection with family and mental health support. The impact of COVID-19 was mostly related to academic issues by students from Italy, whereas to the drastic loss of social connectedness by the UK sample.

Conclusions: Mental health support for students has an essential role, and measures that encourage communication and social connectedness are likely to be beneficial.

Keywords: COVID-19; interviews; mental health; university students.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Explanatory model of the relationship between COVID-19 restrictions and poor mental health in students.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Briggs A., Clark J., Hall I. Building bridges: Understanding student transition to university. Qual. High. Educ. 2012;18:3–21. doi: 10.1080/13538322.2011.614468. - DOI
    1. Pedrelli P., Nyer M., Yeung A., Zulauf C., Wilens T. College Students: Mental Health Problems and Treatment Considerations. Acad. Psychiatry. 2015;39:503–511. doi: 10.1007/s40596-014-0205-9. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Auerbach R.P., Alonso J., Axinn W.G., Cuijpers P., Ebert D.D., Green J.G., Hwang I., Kessler R.C., Liu H., Mortier P., et al. Mental disorders among college students in the World Health Organization World Mental Health Surveys. Psychol. Med. 2016;46:2955–2970. doi: 10.1017/S0033291716001665. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Auerbach R.P., Mortier P., Bruffaerts R., Alonso J., Benjet C., Cuijpers P., Demyttenaere K., Ebert D.D., Green J.G., Hasking P., et al. WHO World Mental Health Surveys International College Student Project: Prevalence and distribution of mental disorders. J. Abnorm. Psychol. 2018;127:623–638. doi: 10.1037/abn0000362. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Jenkins P.E., Ducker I., Gooding R., James M., Rutter-Eley E. Anxiety and depression in a sample of UK college students: A study of prevalence, comorbidity, and quality of life. J. Am. Coll. Health. 2021;69:813–819. doi: 10.1080/07448481.2019.1709474. - DOI - PubMed