ArticlePloS one2022
"Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on university students' physical health, mental health and learning, a cross-sectional study including 917 students from eight universities in Germany".
Article in PloS one, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 65 citations in OpenAlex.
- Impact of meditation-only interventions on university students' resilience: A pairwise and network meta-analysis of randomised actively and passively controlled trials.Applied psychology. Health and well-being · 2026Pooled it
- Perceived antisemitism and the mental health of Jewish university students in Germany: a quantitative comparative study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- The Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) domains positive valence system, negative valence system, cognitive systems, and social processes and their relationship with stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms in a university student sample.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- The importance of the socio-historical context: similarities and differences in identity development and psychological adjustment across two cohorts of Spanish college emerging adults.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Supporting the mental health of undergraduate women in chemistry.Communications chemistry · 2025Article
- Factors Associated with Substance Use and Physical Activity Among German University Students 20 Months into the COVID-19 Pandemic.Journal of prevention (2022) · 2025Article
- What is the impact of social support on self-rated health and depressive symptoms in university students: a survey study in two German universities.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Mediating Factors and Demographic Disparities Associated With Disordered Eating in University Students During the Era of COVID-19.European eating disorders review : the journal of the Eating Disorders Association · 2025Article
- Poor mental health and its impact on academic outcomes in university students before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: analysis of routine service data.BJPsych open · 2025Article
- Mental health literacy in nursing students: Insights from a cross-sectional analysis.PloS one · 2025Article
- Changes in health behaviour of medical students during and after the COVID-19 pandemic-focus on physical activity, screen time, sleep duration, unhealthy foods, alcohol, and tobacco.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Article
- Sociodemographic, economic, and academic factors linked with resilience in university students during covid-19 pandemic: a Brazilian cross-sectional study.BMC psychology · 2024Article
- Mental Health of Medical Students After Combating the COVID-19 Epidemic: A Cross-sectional Study in Vietnam.Journal of preventive medicine and public health = Yebang Uihakhoe chi · 2024Article
- A cross-sectional study of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic: Student perceptions.Health science reports · 2024Article
- Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on University Students' Mental Health: A Literature Review.Cureus · 2024Review
- The Impact of COVID-Related Restrictions on the Mental Health of Students.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2024Review
- Unmasking the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of college students: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Migraine symptoms and association of triggers, coping strategies and clinical characteristics with COVID-19 diagnosis among university students in Peninsular Malaysia: A cross-sectional study.Malaysian family physician : the official journal of the Academy of Family Physicians of Malaysia · 2024Article
- Mental Health and the Intersection of Perceived Discrimination and Social Inequalities Among Students in Germany - a Quantitative Intersectional Study.International journal of public health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected physical and mental health. Since its commencement in 2020, social distancing has become the "new normal". Temporary lockdowns and distance learning have disproportionately affected young adults, including university students. To identify effects of the pandemic on university students' physical and mental health and learning, this empirical study included eight universities in Heidelberg, Mannheim and Ludwigshafen. Data was collected in May and June 2020. The self-administered survey was filled by 1,246 university students. 917 students completed the survey in full. 80.6% were bachelor students (n = 738), the mean semester was 3.8 and mean age was 23.1 years. 51.8% (n = 472) were female students and 47.4% (n = 432) male students. 38.5% (n = 352) stated a deterioration in physical health and 53.1% (n = 485) in mental health. From 0 to 10, students rated mean levels of stress highest due to social distancing (5.6), spending most time at home (5.0) and e-learning (4.5). Compared to male students, female students' mental health worsened significantly (58.7% vs. 46.8%). A logistic regression analysis identified gender having a significant effect on university students' stress levels: males seemed to have a lower risk of moderate to high levels of stress compared to females (odds ratio = 0.698; 95% CI = 0.515 to 0.945). Age, city of university and semester did not show a significant effect. The results are important to both regional and international audiences as university students face similar physical and mental health challenges due to the pandemic and its public health measures. Low-threshold initiatives are needed to mitigate the effects of the pandemic. These may include measures to reinforce students' locus of control, sense of belonging, relaxation and mindfulness as well as (online) counselling services. Gender-specific differences must be taken into account.
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Registered trials
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