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Cited by 11International Student and Expatriate ChallengesStudent Stress and CopingDigital Mental Health Interventions

A blended group intervention to promote social connectedness and wellbeing among international university students: an exploratory study

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Cipolletta, Sabrina, Tedoldi, Ilaria, Tomaino, Silvia Caterina Maria·2024·Frontiers in Psychology
DOI 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1497544PMC PMC11632463
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Abstract

Introduction: Loneliness is a prevalent issue among international university students, often exacerbated by cultural and linguistic barriers. This pilot study aims to assess the feasibility, acceptability and impact of a blended intervention to promote international students' social connectedness and well-being. Methods: A sample of 49 international students from the University of Padua (Italy) was recruited. The study followed the methodology of a non-randomized controlled trial comparing a blended intervention (comprising group activities and online self-help materials) with two other active conditions (self-help only and peer-to-peer interventions) and a control condition at two times (baseline and at 8 weeks). Participants completed a survey to assess their satisfaction with the interventions, changes in their interactions and wellbeing. They also filled in some questionnaires to measure anxiety, depression, perceived social support, loneliness and satisfaction with life. A mixed-method analysis was conducted. Results: Results showed that interventions involving in-person activities had significant advantages over self-help intervention in terms of interaction improvement and a higher number of relationships. Participants perceived self-help materials as more relevant, satisfactory, and functional within the blended group compared to the self-help group. Contrary to the control group, the blended and peer-to-peer groups reported lower scores on the standardized measures of loneliness, anxiety, and depression, and higher scores on satisfaction with life, collected pre- and post-intervention. The thematic analysis of the answers to the open-ended questions showed that in-person group activities provided the opportunity to compare themselves with peers and have a direct experience of new social connections. Discussion: The findings highlight the importance of translating insights from self-help materials into active and direct social experiences, to reduce loneliness through the emergence of new perspectives and shared meaning making.

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  • A commitment to social relationships promotes wellbeing.

    “These results suggest that a commitment to social relationships promotes wellbeing, as a recent study conducted with the same population confirm (Cipolletta et al., 2024).”

    From Social connections combat loneliness and promote wellbeing among college students coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic (2025) · cites this paper as Cipolletta et al., 2024

    The Conclusion (page unavailable) links face-to-face group interactions with connectedness and suggests a beneficial impact on well-being among international university students. But the Discussion says the standardized questionnaire analyses did not show significant intervention effects, so describing the study as confirming that commitment to social relationships promotes well-being overstates its findings. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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1 of the 81 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Zhao J. Houghton S. Glasgow K. (2022). International students’ mental health amidst COVID-19-a systematic review based on current evidence. Educ. Res. Perspect. 49, 29– 62. doi: 10.3316/informit.810360884961033 · DOI

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Authors
Cipolletta, S., Tedoldi, I., & Tomaino, S. C. M.
Affiliations
University of Padua (IT)
Corresponding author
Cipolletta, Sabrina
ORCID
Venue
Frontiers in Psychology
Publisher
Frontiers Media SA
Published
2024-11-27
Volume
15
Pages
1497544-1497544
ISSN
1664-1078 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1497544
PMC
PMC11632463
OpenAlex
W4404764297
Cited by
11
References
81
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 4
FWCI
9.19
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Frontiers in Psychology (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Padua Research Archive (University of Padova) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
Università degli Studi di Padova
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Communication › International Student and Expatriate Challenges
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Student Stress and Coping
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
Keywords
loneliness, international students, social connectedness, well-being, blended intervention, group intervention, peer-led intervention, self-help materials, perceived social support, anxiety, depression, life satisfaction, feasibility and acceptability, university students

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