ReviewAdolescent research review2022
Changes in College Students Mental Health and Lifestyle During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review of Longitudinal Studies.
Review in Adolescent research review, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 64 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
64 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 141 citations in OpenAlex.
- Instruments used to measure well-being, ill-being, and health-related lifestyle behaviors in students attending Italian universities: a systematic review.Frontiers in public health · 2026Pooled it
- Impacts of the Mindfulness Meditation Mobile App Calm on Undergraduate Students' Sleep and Emotional State: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR formative research · 2025Trial
- An online delivered running and walking group program to support low-active post-secondary students' well-being and exercise behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic: a pilot randomized controlled trial.Journal of behavioral medicine · 2024Trial
- Skill Enactment Among University Students Using a Brief Video-Based Mental Health Intervention: Mixed Methods Study Within a Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR mental health · 2024Trial
- Improving stress management, anxiety, and mental well-being in medical students through an online Mindfulness-Based Intervention: a randomized study.Scientific reports · 2023Trial
- Mental Health Among First-Year Students Transitioning to University in Australia: A Longitudinal Study.Psychological reports · 2026Article
- A mixed-methods evaluation of a psychosocial intervention to reduce mental health stigma among university students.Discover mental health · 2026Article
- Mental Health Screening Before and After the 2020 COVID-19 Closures of US College Campuses: A Cross-Sectional Comparison Using Natural Language Processing.Public health reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974) · 2026Article
- Psychosocial predictors of mental well-being in higher education students: a comprehensive approach.BMC public health · 2026Article
- The Relationship Between Ostracism and Mental Health Issues Among College Students: The Chain Mediating Role of Rumination and Smartphone Addiction.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Physical activity, emotional eating, screen-based sedentary behavior, and physical and mental health in chinese university students: a cross-sectional study.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Associations between physical activity and quality of life in university students during the COVID-19 pandemic.Health and quality of life outcomes · 2026Observational
- Exercise Attitudes Mediate the Impact of Mental Health on Physical Activity Practices Among Chinese College Students: A Cross-Sectional Study in Chongqing.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2026Article
- Key factors and serial mediation analysis of anxiety and depression among university students: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Temporal trends and developmental trajectories of physical fitness among university students: a 13-year accelerated longitudinal study.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Psychological symptoms, comorbidities and symptom items associated with self-reported mental health needs in college students.BMC psychiatry · 2025Article
- Sensitivity to change of the COVID-19 anxiety syndrome scale among Canadian dentists.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- Replacing sedentary behavior with physical activity reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression: a study with young adults.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Mental Health Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on College Students: A Literature Review with Emphasis on Vulnerable and Minority Populations.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Emerging Adult Resilience to the Early Stages of the COVID-Pandemic: A Systematic Scoping Review.Child psychiatry and human development · 2025Article
4 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
College students have poorer mental health than their peers. Their poorer health conditions seem to be caused by the greater number of stressors to which they are exposed, which can increase the risk of the onset of mental disorders. The pandemic has been an additional stressor that may have further compromised the mental health of college students and changed their lifestyles with important consequences for their well-being. Although research has recognized the impact of COVID-19 on college students, only longitudinal studies can improve knowledge on this topic. This review summarizes the data from 17 longitudinal studies examining changes in mental health and lifestyle among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to improve understanding of the effects of the outbreak on this population. Following PRISMA statements, the following databases were searched PubMed, EBSCO, SCOPUS and Web of Science. The overall sample included 20,108 students. The results show an increase in anxiety, mood disorders, alcohol use, sedentary behavior, and Internet use and a decrease in physical activity. Female students and sexual and gender minority youth reported poorer mental health conditions. Further research is needed to clarify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable subgroups of college students. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40894-022-00192-7.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.