Students' mental health can affect their energy level, concentration, mental ability, and optimism, and may co-occur with depression and anxiety, and impact academic performance. During the COVID-19 pandemic, although the restrictive measures can control the spreading of disease, it also heightened pre-existing psychological distress associated with academic burden, social and family relationships. Several nationwide studies consistently demonstrated increased levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. To prepare students for a seamless transition from education to employment, the mental health consequences and underlying resilience factors should be well characterized, and effective solutions to improve students’ mental health are in urgent need and highly demanded.
Our goal is to gather empirical findings, both quantitative and qualitative, to investigate the mental health challenges college students encountered. We welcome studies extending existing findings by employing holistic approaches in examining mental health consequences of college students during but not limited to the pandemic. In addition to broadening our understanding of mere mental health challenges, more emphasis will be placed on exploring the determinants of resilience and strategies of promoting mental well-being to buffer the deleterious effects. Further, with the advancement of information technology, conventional face-to-face lectures were substituted by online ones to control the spread of the virus during the pandemic.
We welcome studies exploring solutions to promote students’ mental health including but not limited to the following:
(1) Exploring the mental health problems of college students encountered during but not limited to, the COVID-19 pandemic from a holistic and systemic approach
(2) Identifying particular subgroups, disciplines of college students that are vulnerable to the mental health challenges, and elucidating the underlying contextual factors associating with them
(3) Investigating the biopsychosocial determinants of resilience on mental ill-health
(4) Introducing innovative strategies or interventions for promoting the mental well-being of college students during but not limited to, the COVID-19 pandemic, and evaluating the effectiveness of those strategies and intervention
(5) Utilizing information technology facilitating the prevention of mental problems and the promotion of mental well-being
Students' mental health can affect their energy level, concentration, mental ability, and optimism, and may co-occur with depression and anxiety, and impact academic performance. During the COVID-19 pandemic, although the restrictive measures can control the spreading of disease, it also heightened pre-existing psychological distress associated with academic burden, social and family relationships. Several nationwide studies consistently demonstrated increased levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. To prepare students for a seamless transition from education to employment, the mental health consequences and underlying resilience factors should be well characterized, and effective solutions to improve students’ mental health are in urgent need and highly demanded.
Our goal is to gather empirical findings, both quantitative and qualitative, to investigate the mental health challenges college students encountered. We welcome studies extending existing findings by employing holistic approaches in examining mental health consequences of college students during but not limited to the pandemic. In addition to broadening our understanding of mere mental health challenges, more emphasis will be placed on exploring the determinants of resilience and strategies of promoting mental well-being to buffer the deleterious effects. Further, with the advancement of information technology, conventional face-to-face lectures were substituted by online ones to control the spread of the virus during the pandemic.
We welcome studies exploring solutions to promote students’ mental health including but not limited to the following:
(1) Exploring the mental health problems of college students encountered during but not limited to, the COVID-19 pandemic from a holistic and systemic approach
(2) Identifying particular subgroups, disciplines of college students that are vulnerable to the mental health challenges, and elucidating the underlying contextual factors associating with them
(3) Investigating the biopsychosocial determinants of resilience on mental ill-health
(4) Introducing innovative strategies or interventions for promoting the mental well-being of college students during but not limited to, the COVID-19 pandemic, and evaluating the effectiveness of those strategies and intervention
(5) Utilizing information technology facilitating the prevention of mental problems and the promotion of mental well-being