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. 2024 Oct 30:12:1442773.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1442773. eCollection 2024.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on university students' psychological distress, well-being, and utilization of mental health services in the United States: populations at greatest risk

Elaine Cooper Russell  1 , Tolulope M Abidogun  1 , Lisa L Lindley  2 , Kenneth W Griffin  1
Affiliations

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on university students' psychological distress, well-being, and utilization of mental health services in the United States: populations at greatest risk

Elaine Cooper Russell et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic led to major disruptions in the lives of university students, which is a population that is already at a greater risk of mental health concerns. Little is known about how the pandemic impacted distress and mental health services utilization among university students across the United States.

Methods: Using survey data from the National College Health Assessment, both before the COVID-19 pandemic (pre-March 2020, n = 88,986) and during the pandemic (Spring 2021, n = 96,489), the present study examined mental health symptoms and utilization of mental health services among undergraduate students attending four-year universities in the United States.

Results: There were notable increases in measures of psychological distress and reductions in well-being from before the pandemic to during the pandemic. However, overall utilization rates of mental health services slightly decreased from pre-pandemic to during the pandemic. Predictors of severe psychological distress included those who experienced loneliness, COVID-19 related stressors, and loss of a loved one from COVID-19. COVID-related stressors and loneliness were associated with higher utilization rates of mental health services, while well-being and resilience were associated with lower utilization rates.

Discussion: Analyses revealed that several demographic groups were at an elevated risk for severe psychological distress, including non-binary, female, and sexual minority students, and especially those who identify as both non-binary and non-heterosexual. Results indicated that students of color, especially female students of color, were less likely to receive mental health services. Future research is needed to increase our understanding of the barriers to mental health service use among high-risk university students.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; United States university/college students; mental health; mental health service utilization; psychological distress and well-being.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Psychological distress (K6 score) categorized by low, moderate, and severe for pre and peak COVID-19.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Rates of severe psychological distress by sexual minority status and gender (Spring 2021).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Two and three-way intersections between race/ethnicity, sexual minority status, and gender regarding severe psychological distress.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Rates of mental health services utilization by race/ethnicity and gender (Spring 2021).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Rates of mental health services utilization by sexual minority status and gender (Spring 2021).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Two and three-way intersections between race/ethnicity, sexual minority status, and gender regarding past year access to mental health services.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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