Reuter Peter R, Forster Bridget L, Kruger Bethany J
Marieb College of Health & Human Services, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, United States of America.
PeerJ. 2021 Dec 14;9:e12528. doi: 10.7717/peerj.12528. eCollection 2021.
COVID-related restrictions impacted the lives of students on and off campus during Academic Year 2020/2021.
Our study collected data on student health behavior and habits as well as their mental and emotional health using anonymous surveys. We compared these data with data collected prior to COVID in the longitudinal part of our study ( = 721) and analyzed them for the cross-sectional part of the study ( = 506).
The longitudinal data show a significant difference for some student behaviors and habits, such as sleeping habits, physical activity, breakfast consumption, time spent online or playing video games, vaping, and marijuana use, during the COVID pandemic compared with pre-COVID data. Respondents also reported a significant increase in difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions, as well as being impacted by feelings of sadness or hopelessness. Yet, there was no increase in the proportion of respondents considering, planning or attempting suicide during COVID. The cross-sectional data illuminate the negative effect of the overall situation and the restrictions on students' mental and emotional well-being. Three-quarters of respondents reported having craved human interaction during the past six months, more than half felt that their mental/emotional health had been impacted by the lack of social events or the switch to virtual (online) teaching. Two-thirds or more of respondents also expressed that they felt less connected to their peers and less motivated in their studies than in previous semesters. Fifty percent or more of respondents selected anxious, stressed, overwhelmed, disconnected, tired, and fatigued as words that best described their emotional state during the pandemic.
The impact of COVID-related restrictions on students' behaviors and habits as well as their mental and emotional health was less severe than one would have expected based on studies during the early stage of the pandemic. While some behaviors and habits changed during the COVID pandemic compared with the pre-COVID period, the changes were not substantial overall. Our study did not find an increase in the proportion of respondents considering, planning or attempting suicide during COVID, although the cross-sectional data from our survey make the negative effect of the overall situation and the restrictions on students' mental and emotional well-being evident. The impact of the pandemic will unquestionably be long-lasting and will necessitate further and future investigations.
与新冠疫情相关的限制措施在2020/2021学年影响了学生在校园内外的生活。
我们的研究通过匿名调查收集了学生的健康行为和习惯以及他们的心理和情绪健康数据。我们将这些数据与研究纵向部分（n = 721）在新冠疫情之前收集的数据进行比较，并对研究的横断面部分（n = 506）的数据进行分析。
纵向数据显示，与新冠疫情之前的数据相比，在新冠疫情期间，一些学生行为和习惯存在显著差异，如睡眠习惯、体育活动、早餐摄入、上网或玩电子游戏的时间、吸电子烟和使用大麻。受访者还报告称，注意力集中、记忆或做决定的困难显著增加，以及受到悲伤或绝望情绪的影响。然而，在新冠疫情期间，考虑、计划或尝试自杀的受访者比例并未增加。横断面数据揭示了整体情况和限制措施对学生心理和情绪健康的负面影响。四分之三的受访者报告在过去六个月里渴望人际互动，超过一半的人认为社交活动的缺乏或转向虚拟（在线）教学对他们的心理/情绪健康产生了影响。三分之二或更多的受访者还表示，与前几个学期相比，他们与同龄人之间的联系减少，学习动力降低。50%或更多的受访者选择焦虑、压力大、不堪重负、脱节、疲惫和疲劳等词来最好地描述他们在疫情期间的情绪状态。
与新冠疫情相关的限制措施对学生行为和习惯以及心理和情绪健康的影响不如疫情早期研究预期的那么严重。虽然与新冠疫情之前相比，一些行为和习惯在疫情期间发生了变化，但总体变化不大。我们的研究没有发现新冠疫情期间考虑、计划或尝试自杀的受访者比例增加，尽管我们调查的横断面数据显示了整体情况和限制措施对学生心理和情绪健康的负面影响。疫情的影响无疑将是持久的，需要进一步和未来的调查。
