Cited by 220COVID-19 and Mental HealthStudent Stress and CopingMental Health Treatment and Access

Mental health prevalence and predictors among university students in nine countries during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-national study

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Ochnik, Dominika, Rogowska, Aleksandra M., Kuśnierz, Cezary, Jakubiak, Monika, Schütz, Astrid, Held, Marco J., Arzenšek, Ana, Benatov, Joy +7 more·2021·Scientific Reports

Abstract

The student population has been highly vulnerable to the risk of mental health deterioration during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This study aimed to reveal the prevalence and predictors of mental health among students in Poland, Slovenia, Czechia, Ukraine, Russia, Germany, Turkey, Israel, and Colombia in a socioeconomic context during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was conducted among 2349 students (69% women) from May-July 2020. Data were collected by means of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), Gender Inequality Index (GII), Standard & Poor's Global Ratings, the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT), and a sociodemographic survey. Descriptive statistics and Bayesian multilevel skew-normal regression analyses were conducted. The prevalence of high stress, depression, and generalized anxiety symptoms in the total sample was 61.30%, 40.3%, and 30%, respectively. The multilevel Bayesian model showed that female sex was a credible predictor of PSS-10, GAD-7, and PHQ-8 scores. In addition, place of residence (town) and educational level (first-cycle studies) were risk factors for the PHQ-8. This study showed that mental health issues are alarming in the student population. Regular psychological support should be provided to students by universities.

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Authors
Ochnik, D., Rogowska, A. M., Kuśnierz, C., Jakubiak, M., Schütz, A., Held, M. J., Arzenšek, A., Benatov, J., Berger, R., Korchagina, E. V., Pavlova, I., Blažková, I., Aslan, I., Çınar, O., & Cuero-Acosta, Y. A.
Affiliations
  • Akademia Śląska (PL)
  • University of Opole (PL)
  • Opole University of Technology (PL)
  • Maria Curie-Skłodowska University (PL)
  • University of Bamberg (DE)
  • University of Primorska (SI)
  • University of Haifa (IL)
  • Tel Aviv University (IL)
  • Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University (RU)
  • Mendel University in Brno (CZ)
  • Ağrı İbrahim Çeçen University (TR)
Corresponding author
Held, Marco J.
Venue
Scientific Reports
Published
2021-09-20
Volume
11
Issue
1
Pages
18644-18644
ISSN
2045-2322 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3198966822
Cited by
220
References
104
Citations by year
2026: 20 · 2025: 28 · 2024: 52 · 2023: 60 · 2022: 54 · 2021: 6
FWCI
29.29
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Scientific Reports (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, other-oa)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Ağrı İbrahim Çeçen University Institutional Repository (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Student Stress and Coping
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
Keywords
student mental health, COVID-19 pandemic, depression, generalized anxiety disorder, perceived stress, university students, cross-national comparison, gender differences, socioeconomic factors, psychological support, risk factors
MeSH terms
COVID-19, Anxiety Disorders, Bayes Theorem, Depression, Female, Geography, Humans, Male, Mental Health, Regression Analysis, Stress, Psychological, Students, Universities, Prevalence, Multilevel Analysis, Pandemics

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