An international comparison of gender differences in mental health among higher-education students during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic: a multilevel design.
Alcohol
COVID-19
Depression
Higher education
Multilevel
Journal
Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique
ISSN: 0778-7367
Titre abrégé: Arch Public Health
Pays: England
ID NLM: 9208826
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
07 Dec 2023
07 Dec 2023
Historique:
received:
09
11
2022
accepted:
30
10
2023
medline:
8
12
2023
pubmed:
8
12
2023
entrez:
8
12
2023
Statut:
epublish
Résumé
Mental health problems are a common phenomenon among higher-education students. How these mental health problems manifest themselves appears to differ between male and female students. While the latter group bears a greater risk of developing internalizing problems, with depression being particularly prevalent, these problems manifest themselves in male students mainly via externalizing disorders, with alcohol abuse being the most prevalent. Available cross-national research on students' mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, to date, mainly focused on the prevalence of depressive symptoms, thereby ignoring a possible gendered impact of the pandemic. The current study used the COVID-19 International Student Well-Being Study, which collected data on students' mental health during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in 26 countries, and multilevel modeling was applied. It finds that, overall, female students reported more depressive feelings, and male students reported more excessive alcohol consumption. The strictness of the governmental containment measures explained a substantial amount of these gender differences in depressive feelings, but not in excessive alcohol consumption. Our study highlights that the COVID-19 pandemic had a gendered impact on students' mental health. Studies that ignore the gendered impact of the COVID-19 pandemic are therefore limited in scope.
Sections du résumé
BACKGROUND
BACKGROUND
Mental health problems are a common phenomenon among higher-education students. How these mental health problems manifest themselves appears to differ between male and female students. While the latter group bears a greater risk of developing internalizing problems, with depression being particularly prevalent, these problems manifest themselves in male students mainly via externalizing disorders, with alcohol abuse being the most prevalent. Available cross-national research on students' mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, to date, mainly focused on the prevalence of depressive symptoms, thereby ignoring a possible gendered impact of the pandemic.
METHODS
METHODS
The current study used the COVID-19 International Student Well-Being Study, which collected data on students' mental health during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in 26 countries, and multilevel modeling was applied.
RESULTS
RESULTS
It finds that, overall, female students reported more depressive feelings, and male students reported more excessive alcohol consumption. The strictness of the governmental containment measures explained a substantial amount of these gender differences in depressive feelings, but not in excessive alcohol consumption.
CONCLUSIONS
CONCLUSIONS
Our study highlights that the COVID-19 pandemic had a gendered impact on students' mental health. Studies that ignore the gendered impact of the COVID-19 pandemic are therefore limited in scope.
Identifiants
pubmed: 38062523
doi: 10.1186/s13690-023-01211-2
pii: 10.1186/s13690-023-01211-2
pmc: PMC10701939
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Pagination
211Subventions
Organisme : Bijzonder Onderzoeksfonds, Universiteit Antwerpen
ID : 43969
Organisme : Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
ID : 1293322N
Informations de copyright
© 2023. The Author(s).
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