Psychology

COVID-19 and common mental disorders among university students in South Africa

J. Bantjes, S. Swanevelder, et al.

This study delves into the mental health effects of COVID-19 on first-year university students in South Africa, revealing that the pandemic did not significantly alter the trends in mental disorders. The research, conducted by a team including Jason Bantjes and Ronald C Kessler, sheds light on how COVID-19 serves as just one of many stressors faced by students.

00:00

Playback language: English

Index

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of first-year university students in South Africa. Analyzing cross-sectional survey data from 2015, 2017, and 2020, the study found no consistent pattern of increased prevalence in major depressive episode, generalized anxiety disorder, or suicidal ideation following the pandemic's onset. Lifetime prevalence rates of common mental disorders have steadily increased since 2015, and increases during COVID-19 were not consistently larger than pre-pandemic increases. The findings suggest that in the context of existing challenges on South African university campuses, COVID-19 may have been one stressor among many.

Publisher

S Afr J Sci

Published On

Jan 31, 2023

Authors

Jason Bantjes, Sonja Swanevelder, Esme Jordaan, Nancy A Sampson, Maria V Petukhova, Christine Lochner, Dan J Stein, Ronald C Kessler

Related Publications

Explore these studies to deepen your understanding of the subject.

Medicine and Health

A pandemic toll in frail older adults: Higher odds of incident and persistent common mental disorders in the ELSA-Brasil COVID-19 mental health cohort

C. Szlejf, C. K. Suemoto, et al.

Health and Fitness

The relationship between home-based physical activity and general well-being among Chinese university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: the mediation effect of self-esteem

M. Cao, Y. Teng, et al.

Social Work

Invisible among the vulnerable: a nuanced perspective of energy poverty at the intersection of gender and disability in South Africa

M. A. Okyere and B. Lin

Psychology

Prevalence of and factors associated with post-traumatic stress disorder among French university students 1 month after the COVID-19 lockdown

M. Wathelet, T. Fovet, et al.

Listen, Learn & Level Up

Over 10,000 hours of research content in 25+ fields, available in 12+ languages.

No more digging through PDFs, just hit play and absorb the world's latest research in your language, on your time.

listen to research audio papers with researchbunny