scholarly journals Exploring Digital Health Use and Opinions of University Students: Field Survey Study (Preprint)

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilaria Montagni ◽  
Tanguy Cariou ◽  
Tiphaine Feuillet ◽  
Emmanuel Langlois ◽  
Christophe Tzourio
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
University Students ◽  
General Health ◽  
Field Survey ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Interventions ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Health And Well Being

BACKGROUND During university, students face some potentially serious health risks, and their lifestyle can have a direct effect on health and health behaviors later in life. Concurrently, university students are digital natives having easy access to the internet and new technologies. Digital health interventions offer promising new opportunities for health promotion, disease prevention, and care in this specific population. The description of the current use of and opinions on digital health among university students can inform future digital health strategies and interventions within university settings. OBJECTIVE The aim of this exploratory study was to report on university students’ use and opinions regarding information and communication technologies for health and well-being, taking into account sociodemographic and self-rated general and mental health correlates. METHODS This field survey was conducted from March to April 2017. An informed consent form and a paper questionnaire were given to students aged 18 to 24 years in 4 university campuses in Bordeaux, France. The survey was formulated in 3 sections: (1) sociodemographic characteristics and self-rated general and mental health, (2) information about the use of digital health, and (3) opinions about digital health. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and tests of independence. RESULTS A total of 59.8% (303/507 females) students completed the questionnaire. Concerning digital health use, 34.9% (174/498) had at least 1 health app mostly for physical activity (49.4%, 86/174) and general health monitoring (41.4%, 72/174,), but only 3.9% (20/507) of students had a wearable device. Almost all (94.8%, 450/476) had searched for Web-based health-related information at least once in the last 12 months. The most sought health-related topics were nutrition (68.1%, 324/476); pain and illnesses (64.5%, 307/476); and stress, anxiety, or depression (51.1%, 243/476). Although Wikipedia (79.7%, 357/448) and general health websites (349/448, 77.9%) were the most consulted sources, students considered institutional or official websites as the most credible sources (309/335, 92.2%). There were significant differences in digital health use by gender, field, and year of study. No statistically significant association was found between digital health use and self-rated general and mental health status. Concerning opinions on digital health, although 94.1% (475/505) of students estimated that today’s digital health cannot replace traditional health services and medical consultations, 44.6% (207/464) of students declared that this could be possible in the future, provided that digital health interventions are promoted by institutional or official entities. CONCLUSIONS University students are largely using the internet for health information seeking, but using less mobile health apps and very few wearable devices. Our data suggest that digital health has the potential for improving health and well-being at the university, especially if digital health interventions take into account students’ profiles, interests, and needs.

scholarly journals Contribution of researchers in the Arab region to peer-reviewed literature on mental health and well-being of university students

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Waleed M. Sweileh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
University Students ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Research Articles ◽  
Search Query ◽  
Research Gaps ◽  
Arab Region ◽  
Health And Well Being

Abstract Objective The current study aimed at investigating the contribution of researchers in the Arab region to the field of mental health and well-being of university students using bibliometric tools. Method Relevant literature was obtained from the Scopus database for the period from 2001–2020. Examples of keywords used in the query included “college student”, “university student”, and undergraduate student” combined with keywords such as wellbeing, wellness, suicide, and anxiety. No language restriction was used. Only research articles were considered. The search query was validated. Bibliometric indicators and mappings such as active countries, institutions, authors, highly cited documents, and the most frequently encountered topics were identified and discussed to shed light on research gaps in the Arab region. Research gaps were also identified. The analysis was carried out on February 12, 2021. Results The search query returned 309 research articles published by authors from 17 different Arab countries. Less than one-third (n = 97, 31.4%) of the retrieved articles were carried out in collaboration with authors from 39 non-Arab countries, mainly from the United Kingdom and the United States. The overall contribution of researchers from the Arab region to global research in the field was 5.6%. In total, 1212 authors from 791 different institutions participated in publishing the retrieved research articles. At the country level, Saudi Arabia (n = 125, 40.5%) ranked first, followed by Jordan, Egypt, and Lebanon. At the institutional level, The University of Jordan (n = 25, 8.1%) ranked first, followed by King Saud University, and Kuwait University. The retrieved articles included 132 (42.7%) articles on stress/distress, 95 (30.7%) on anxiety, 61 (19.7%) on depression. Knowledge gaps on suicide, eating disorders, substance use, and happiness were identified. The retrieved articles appeared in 193 different journals and approximately two-thirds of the active journal were in general medicine, public health, and education. Conclusions The contribution of researchers in the Arab region to the field showed a noticeable increase with time. However, important research gaps were identified. The contribution was confined to authors from a limited number of Arab countries. Funding and international research collaboration for the mental health and well-being of students need to be strengthened.

scholarly journals Invisible Identity in the Workplace: Intersectional Madness and Processes of Disclosure at Work

2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Merrick Daniel Pilling
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Multiple Identities ◽  
Work Lives ◽  
Subject Positions ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Invisible Disabilities ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Health And Well Being

<p>In this article I draw on recent work regarding disabilities that are not readily apparent to analyze the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and/or trans (LGBQT) mad people in the workplace. Based on interviews with LGBQT people about madness and everyday life, I use an intersectional approach to examine participants&rsquo; work lives. I argue that decisions about disclosure of mental health related information are particularly pressing and high risk at work, given the economic stakes and the effects on health and well-being. As is the case for others with invisible disabilities, notions of authenticity shape processes of disclosure and access to accommodations for LGBQT mad people in the workplace. An intersectional analysis shows how madness cannot be considered the only salient aspect of my participants&rsquo; subject positions and how multiple identities operate together to shape their experiences.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Keywords:&nbsp;madness, invisible disability, LGBQT, intersectionality,&nbsp;workplace, race, sexuality, gender identity&nbsp;</p>

scholarly journals Distress among Brazilian university students due to the Covid-19 pandemic: survey results and reflections

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Von Krakauer Hübner ◽  
Marcella de Lima Bruscatto ◽  
Rafaella Dourado Lima
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
University Students ◽  
Mental Health Center ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Catholic University ◽  
Brazilian Students ◽  
Peritraumatic Distress ◽  
Health And Well Being

AbstractThe first case of infection with the new coronavirus was identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. In March, the World Health Organization (WHO) defined the disease epidemic as a pandemic. Thus, a quarantine was imposed by many governments. As a consequence, and given that epidemiological outbreaks of infectious diseases, such as Covid-19, are associated with psychological disorders and symptoms of mental illness, researchers at the Shanghai Mental Health Center have created the Covid-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index (CPDI), in which the results are obtained: normal, mild/moderate distress and severe distress. The main objective of the study was based on the application of CPDI, in order to identify the health and well-being of Brazilian students from different undergraduate courses at the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC/SP) during the Covid-19 pandemic and to test the hypothesis that medical students suffer more than students from other courses. The research is based on a cross-sectional observational study, in which we applied, using Google FormsR, the questions contained in CPDI, among with demographic data: age, sex, educational institution, undergraduate course and school year. The Index was applied online for seven days in which a total of 654 valid responses were obtained: 501 (76.6%) female and 149 (22.8%) male. Regarding age, 333 students (50.91%) were 17-20 years old, 279 (42.66%) between 21-25, 30 (4.59%) between 26-30 and 12 (1.84%) between 31-50. The results indicate that the participants reported significant psychological distress, according to the CPDI score. Practically 90% (87.92%) of the students experienced suffering, while only 12.08% did not suffer. The study provides the first empirical evidence on the level of psychological distress in Brazilian university students during the Covid-19 pandemic. Also, it suggests support and monitoring of university students during and after the pandemic, with effective and efficient intervention in their mental health.Summary boxesSECTION 1Researchers at the Shanghai Mental Health Center have created the Covid-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index (CPDI), to measure the amount of psychological suffering of the population, due to the pandemic of Coronavirus. Before our research, the survey had been applicated in China and Iran. The main objective of the study was to identify with the survey, the health and well-being of Brazilian students from different undergraduate courses at the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC/SP) during the Covid-19 pandemic and to test the hypothesis that medical students suffer more than students from other courses.SECTION 2The study provides the first empirical evidence on the level of psychological distress in Brazilian university students during the Covid-19 pandemic, practically 90% (87.92%) of the students experienced some suffering.

scholarly journals A Person-Oriented Approach to Multidimensional Perfectionism: Perfectionism Profiles in Health and Well-Being

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-142
Author(s):  
Danielle S. Molnar ◽  
Fuschia M. Sirois ◽  
Gordon L. Flett ◽  
Stanley Sadava
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Chronic Illness ◽  
University Students ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Psychological Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Socially Prescribed Perfectionism ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Oriented Approach

Advances in understanding of the perfectionism construct have been limited by an almost exclusive reliance on a variable-centered approach. This study utilized a person-oriented approach to examine Hewitt and Flett’s conceptualization of multidimensional perfectionism in relation to health and well-being. Levels of conscientiousness, extraversion, and neuroticism were also assessed. Cluster analyses were employed to examine within-person configurations of self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed perfectionism (SPP) in university students ( n = 538) and adults with chronic illness ( n = 773). Five unique configurations were found in both samples and three clusters replicated across samples. “Extreme perfectionists” with high scores across all perfectionism dimensions reported relatively poor physical health, psychological health, psychosocial resources, and well-being along with elevated neuroticism and conscientiousness. A group distinguished by elevated SPP also reported relatively poorer outcomes along with elevated neuroticism and lower conscientiousness. In contrast, “nonperfectionists” reported relatively elevated levels of health and well-being. These profiles differed in their links with health and well-being even after taking into account key differences in conscientiousness and neuroticism. Our results illustrate the importance of employing a person-oriented approach to the study of multidimensional perfectionism, especially as it relates to physical health, mental health, and subjective well-being.

scholarly journals Mental health and well-being from childhood to adulthood: design, methods and results of the 11-year follow-up of the BELLA study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christiane Otto ◽  
Franziska Reiss ◽  
Catharina Voss ◽  
Anne Wüstner ◽  
Ann-Katrin Meyrose ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
General Health ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Individual Growth ◽  
Bella Study ◽  
Prospective Longitudinal ◽  
Health And Well Being

Abstract Mental health and well-being are of great interest in health policy and research. Longitudinal surveys are needed to provide solid population-based data. We describe the design and methods of an 11-year follow-up of the German BELLA study in children, adolescents and young adults, and we report on age- and gender-specific courses of general health and well-being, long-term health-related outcomes of mental health problems, and mental health care use. The BELLA study is the module on mental health and well-being within the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS). Standardised measures were used at each of the five measurement points of the BELLA study. In the 11-year follow-up, young people aged 7–31 years participated (n = 3492). Individual growth modelling, linear regression and descriptive analyses were conducted. Self-reported general health and well-being were both better in younger (vs. older) and in male (vs. female) participants according to the data from all five measurement points. Mental health problems in childhood and adolescence (measured at baseline) predicted impaired health outcomes at 6-year and 11-year follow-ups. Approximately one out of four children with a diagnosed mental disorder was not undergoing mental health treatment. With its 11-year follow-up, the prospective longitudinal BELLA study provides new and solid data on mental health and well-being from childhood to adulthood in Germany, and these data are important for health promotion and prevention practices. These results are consistent with previous findings. Promising future analyses are planned.

Contested meanings of mental health and well-being among university students

2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 453-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vinitha Jithoo
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
University Students ◽  
Emerging Adults ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Health And Well Being

Emerging adults are an important group not only because their opinions and knowledge will determine future attitudes but also because of the emergence of mental health problems during young adulthood. In order to provide relevant support, academics, health care providers as well as policy makers need to be more cognisant of how emerging adults make meaning of their psycho-social developmental context. The objective of the study was to explore how a cohort of 150 university students made meaning of emotional well-being and mental illness, the causes of mental health problems, the negative connotations associated with mental ill health, help-seeking behaviours, and how culture was used as a lens through which mental well-being was understood. The main findings indicate that students struggle to fully understand these concepts mainly because it is shrouded in mystery and complexity and not engaged with freely because of stigma and stereotypical attitudes, and while culture provides a lens to understand the causes and interventions, emerging adults often adopt a level of scepticism and are beginning to vacillate between tradition and modernity. Emerging adults face many barriers to accessing health care services including limited knowledge and stigma related to services, lack of confidentiality, fear of mistreatment, location of facilities, and the high cost of services. Universities and government should actively engage with research evidence to inform policies and programmes to improve the health and well-being of emerging adults.

scholarly journals Mental health of students living with food insecurity during the transition to university

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Howard ◽  
Erin Barker
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Satisfaction With Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
First Year ◽  
Transition To University ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Health Deficit

The present study examined differences in mental health and well-being between students with and without suspected food insecurity during their transition to university. We drew on existing data from four samples of traditionally-aged, first-year undergraduates enrolled at large universities in three provinces (Alberta N = 199; Québec N = 299; Ontario N = 461 and N = 510). Students completed online surveys assessing a wide range of health-related behaviours and indicators, including food security. Poorer mental health (depression, anxiety, stress, low satisfaction with life) was consistently associated with food insecurity across samples. The magnitude of mental health deficit was comparable to socioeconomic disadvantage associated with food insecurity. Students with food insecurity are disproportionately launching their university careers with poorer mental health, revealing a critical point of intervention for these socioeconomically higher-risk students.

scholarly journals Cyberchondria Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic: Challenges and Management Strategies

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rahul Varma ◽  
Sreeja Das ◽  
Tushar Singh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Well Being ◽  
World Health ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Health Organization

The corona-virus disease 2019 (COVID-19), first found in Wuhan, China in December 2019, has posed an inexplicable threat to the global community. After its inception, the virus proliferated rapidly, which led to the cause of millions of deaths, and having a detrimental effect on physical health, social lives, economic uncertainty, and mental health of people. The World Health Organization has reported that there are 111 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 2.45 million deaths due to COVID-19 worldwide. Indisputably, the present pandemic has contributed to the extensive psychological and environmental distress together with clinical depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), domestic violence, and unemployment. Due to the ambiguous nature of the pandemic, educational organizations, and outdoor activities are closed, thus burdening the mental health of younger populations. Children as well as youths are more glued to the Internet for their studies, online gaming, shopping, watching movies, and searching health-related information. Despite the advantages of using the Internet, it has some severe consequences too. Some people are repeatedly searching for physical and mental well-being related information without verifying credible sources, which, in turn, causes distress and anxiety. In such situations, individuals may end up contributing to an illness known as cyberchondria. In this paper, we have tried to highlight the problematic use of Internet for health-related searches and have outlined the management of such illness. We suggest two strategies: firstly, to reduce repeated online searches of health information and, secondly, to manage anxiety-augmenting thoughts that are triggered due to the maladaptive thoughts caused by the abstruse information.

Emerging Ethical Issues in Digital Health Information

2015 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 311-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANTHONY E. SOLOMONIDES ◽  
TIM KEN MACKEY
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Health Information ◽  
Provenance Information ◽  
And Control ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Health Experts

Abstract:The problems of poor or biased information and of misleading health and well-being advice on the Internet have been extensively documented. The recent decision by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers to authorize a large number of new generic, top-level domains, including some with a clear connection to health or healthcare, presents an opportunity to bring some order to this chaotic situation. In the case of the most general of these domains, “.health,” experts advance a compelling argument in favor of some degree of content oversight and control. On the opposing side, advocates for an unrestricted and open Internet counter that this taken-for-granted principle is too valuable to be compromised, and that, once lost, it may never be recovered. We advance and provide evidence for a proposal to bridge the credibility gap in online health information by providing provenance information for websites in the .health domain.

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