Specific programme: KA220-HED - Cooperation partnerships in higher education

Research team:

• NAHIA  IDOIAGA MONDRAGON (MAIN RESERCHER) 
• NAIARA  OZAMIZ ECHEVARRIA (MAIN RESERCHER) 
• IDOIA  LEGORBURU FERNANDEZ 
• AMAIA  QUINTANA ORDORIKA 
• ION  YARRITU CORRALES
• ISRAEL  ALONSO SAEZ
• INGE  AXPE SAEZ
• MIRARI GAZTAÑAGA ECHEVERRIA 
• MAITANE  BELASKO TXERTUDI 
• EIDER  PASCUAL SAGASTIZABAL 
• SONIA  RUIZ DE AZUA GARCIA 

Coordinator:

• SPOLECZNA AKADEMIA NAUK (Poland)

Partners:

• CENTRE FOR ADVANCEMENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY LTD-CARDET (Cyprus);
• Spectrum Research Centre CLG (Ireland);
• UNIVERSIDAD DEL PAIS VASCO/ EUSKAL HERRIKO UNIBERTSITATEA (Spain);
• KMOP - Education and Innovation Hub (Greece)

Total budget: 250.000€ (UPV/EHU: 42.260,00 €)
Total funded: 250.000€ (UPV/EHU: 42.260,00 €)

Start date: 01/12/2022
End date: 30/11/2024

Total duration: 24 months

Brief description: Anxiety and depression are the two most common reasons that students seek mental health services. While the incidence of all other mental illnesses reported by college students has declined or remained flat, anxiety have shown that year-over-year increases.

People experiencing chronic anxiety often avoid places and activities that may trigger these feelings, which negatively affects their quality of life. They often downplay the impact of anxiety on their day-to-day lives, or they simply may not realice they are dealing with a potentially serious mental health condition.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its accompanying infection control measures introduced significant disruptions to the routines of many higher education students around the world. It also deprived them of in-person counselling services and social support.

Psychological literature predicts an increase in anxiety-related disorders, during stressful periods such as pandemics for the prevalence of the connected increase in stress, anxiety and depression (Salari et al., 2020). Moreover, individuals characterized by a primary current anxiety-related disorder are more affected by the pandemic, compared to those affected by other or no mental disorders (Asmundson et al., 2020).

Given these multiple pathways to new mental health problems as well as the likely amplification of pre-exiting difficulties, it is highly likely that HEI staff will observe elevated rates of distress and behavioural challenge. HEI and mental health services therefore need to be prepared for this prospect. Unfortunately, the professionals who interact with students the most (such as HEi staff) are not trained to recognize or work with anxiety among students. As HEi have become a central point in providing students with safety and wellness, it is imperative that educators and administrators are equipped to help students process their anxiety and provide them with necessary supports. Students’ mental health is important and should be addressed by HEi. Poor mental health brings various consequences, as it can hinder a student’s academic success and lead to high dropout rates among struggling students.

The Healthy Minds Study finds that students struggling with mental health are twice as likely to leave an institution without graduating, and the results hold even after controlling for students’ prior academic records. Students suffering from symptoms of mental health disorders are at risk of a lower GPA, discontinuous enrollment, and possibly dropping out. Therefore, HEi should aim to provide all students with access to mental health services that will in turn benefit the student population.

Moreover, HEi should invest in the long-term provision of these services, understanding that student mental health is an issue leaders must continue to address post-pandemic.