ERIC Number: EJ1472985
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 7
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0744-8481
EISSN: EISSN-1940-3208
Available Date: 0000-00-00
The Inequitable Psychological Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Post-Secondary Students with Preexisting Health Conditions: A Longitudinal Study
Sarah Kuburi1; Chloe A. Hamza1; Antonio Lorenzo2; Altea Kthupi2; Shaza A. Fadel2; France Gagnon2
Journal of American College Health, v73 n4 p1780-1786 2025
Objective: Evidence suggests young adults in post-secondary school experienced increased distress during the COVID-19 pandemic, but students' experiences likely varied. Effects may have also changed over time as students adapted. This study examined the mental health of students with and without preexisting health conditions at two points during the pandemic (winter 2020/2021 and spring/summer 2021). Methods: Participants (N = 1465) completed a baseline and follow-up questionnaire assessing their health history, depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, stress, and COVID-19-related worry and perceived vulnerability of severe infection. Results: At both time points, students with preexisting health conditions reported greater distress than those without preexisting health conditions. Stress increased from time 1 to time 2 for all students, and participants with preexisting health conditions significantly increased in their COVID-19 perceived vulnerability of severe infection over time. Conclusions: Findings highlight the need for additional and ongoing mental health supports for vulnerable students throughout the pandemic.
Descriptors: COVID-19, Pandemics, College Students, Mental Health, Depression (Psychology), Anxiety, Stress Variables, Foreign Countries, Chronic Illness, Diseases
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Canada
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; 2Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada