Mental Well-Being of University Students in Social Isolation

Background: The novel coronavirus disease has caused a worldwide pandemic and has been distressing for the general population including the student population in higher education. Aims: This study assesses the changes in the lives of university students, and finds an association between fear of COVID-19 and mental well-being controlled by demographic and socio-psychological factors. Method: Students from one of the largest universities of Hungary were sampled responding to multidimensional questions about their life situations prior to and after social isolation measures, 4-6 weeks after the COVID-19 outbreak in Hungary. The questionnaire packet included the 8-item version of the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale for evaluating mental well-being. Results: Students experienced significant negative changes after 4-6 weeks of confinement in terms of physical activity, relationship with family, friends, studies, financial situation, perceived health, future prospects, and life satisfaction. Desirable changes were observed in smoking habits, cannabis use, and alcohol consumption, including binge drinking. Explanatory variables of favorable mental well-being were younger age, better-perceived health status, higher life satisfaction, and more optimism about future prospects. Limitations: Mental well-being was measured only during social isolation. The pre pandemic status of the students was reported retrospectively, making it prone to recall bias. Conclusion: Findings suggest that the pandemic with its associated social isolation measures negatively affected students' everyday life and well-being, however, the fear of the coronavirus did not contribute to it. Higher institutions should offer a wide range of measures to mitigate the downstream mental health consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak in university population.