UNIVERSITY STUDENTS: Covid, Mental Health and Loneliness

​We know that, for all of us as social beings, no matter what our age, social support and social contact is incredibly important for wellbeing. Social life has really important functions for students who are young adults starting out at university. At that transitional life stage, it is important share experiences with peers, and to establish social connections. Therefore, the potential impacts of the restrictions on social contact imposed by disease containment measures may result in increased loneliness. That is, a painful feeling that arises when there is a gap between actual and desired social contact. 

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The mental health impacts of resultant loneliness may be particularly concerning for young people, including university students, including over time. Our rapid review of the existing evidence about the links between mental health and loneliness (Loades et al.) included several studies of young adults who were university students. We found that when measured at the same time, loneliness was related to both depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as to suicidal thoughts. Over time, there was evidence that loneliness is associated with subsequent depression, up to 3 years later in university students. These studies took place at universities across the world, including in the USA, the UK as well as Europe, Asia and Africa.
 
In the COVID context, we should therefore pay particular attention to those young adults at university who are experiencing loneliness due to social distancing, self-isolation and quarantine measures. Ensuring that opportunities for all students to connect socially with each other, despite the restrictions in place, should be a focus of university wellbeing strategies. Social connection may be through digital means and face-to-face at a safe distance wherever possible. Universities may also consider ways to identify those who are lonely and provide targeted support for both socially connecting and for managing mental health and promoting wellbeing. These efforts, where successful, are likely to be of benefit over time.  Mentally healthy students learn better, and therefore, wellbeing should be at the heart of university strategies.

Dr Maria Loades, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology and NIHR Research Fellow, Department of Psychology, University of Bath

References
McManus, M. N., Borwick, C., & Crawley, E. Rapid Systematic Review: The Impact of Social Isolation and Loneliness on the Mental Health of Children and Adolescents in the Context of COVID-19. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2020.05.009