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. 2022 Jan;50(1):285-301.
doi: 10.1002/jcop.22561. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Stress of university students before and after campus closure in response to COVID-19

Luise von Keyserlingk  1 , Katsumi Yamaguchi-Pedroza  1 , Richard Arum  1 , Jacquelynne S Eccles  1   2
Affiliations

Stress of university students before and after campus closure in response to COVID-19

Luise von Keyserlingk et al. J Community Psychol. 2022 Jan.

Abstract

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, universities were forced to adopt a remote learning model, which introduced a number of stressors into college students' everyday life and study habits. The current study investigates if students' study-related stress increased after the pandemic's onset and how individual and contextual factors moderate this potential stress increase. Longitudinal survey data about students' stress levels and self-efficacy in self-regulation were collected before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic at a public university (N = 274). Regression analysis results show an overall increase in study-related stress levels after the onset of the pandemic. Students with self-efficacy in self-regulation reported lower stress increases; students with higher mental health impairment and limited time for coursework reported larger stress increases. To address students' stress levels and strengthen coping resources, universities should consider providing students with resources to improve their self-regulation and time-management skills.

Keywords: COVID-19; college students; longitudinal data; mental health; stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there are no conflict of interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Stress because of coursework, procrastination, and study/life balance in winter 2020 and spring 2020, error bars indicate the standard errors
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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