A recent survey of nearly 33,000 college students across the US has brought to light the tragic prevalence of depression and anxiety in American youth. The study reveals that both the issues continue to rise, now reaching its peak. The survey, conducted by a Boston University researcher also said that the rising depression levels are a sign of the mounting stress factors due to the coronavirus pandemic, political unrest, and systemic racism and inequality.
Sarah Ketchen Lipson, a Boston University mental health researcher and a co-principal investigator of the nationwide survey which was administered online during the fall 2020 semester through the Healthy Minds Network, said, “Half of the students in fall 2020 screened positive for depression and/or anxiety.”
The survey further reveals that 83 per cent of students said their mental health had negatively impacted their academic performance within the past month, and that two-thirds of college students are struggling with loneliness and feeling isolated. Lipson said the survey's findings underscore the need for university teaching staff and faculty to put mechanisms in place that can accommodate students' mental health needs.
She said, “Faculty need to be flexible with deadlines and remind students that their talent is not solely demonstrated by their ability to get a top grade during one challenging semester.” She added, “Even in larger classes, where 1:1 outreach is more difficult, instructors can send class-wide emails reinforcing the idea that they care about their students not just as learners but as people, and circulating information about campus resources for mental health and wellness.”
Lipson said instructors must bear in mind that the burden of mental health is not the same across all student demographics. “Students of colour and low-income students are more likely to be grieving the loss of a loved one due to Covid,” she said. One point of the survey circled around the stigma attached to mental health. Results revealed that 94 per cent of students say they wouldn't judge someone for seeking out help for mental health, which Lipson says is an indicator that also correlates with those students being likely to seek out help themselves during a personal crisis.
