Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Sarah Gollust, Daniel Eisenberg, PhD, Ezra Golberstein, and Jennifer L. Hefner, MPH. Department of Health Management and Policy, University of Michigan School of Public Health, 109 Observatory, SPH II, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, 734-646-9506, sgollust@umich.edu

Background:

Reports by campus counseling centers and other sources suggest growing mental health problems among university students in the United States, but there are few representative and rigorous studies quantifying the prevalence of various conditions.

Methods:

Depression, anxiety, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and behavior, and (non-suicidal) self-injury behavior were assessed in a random sample of undergraduate and graduate students at a large, Midwestern university. Data were collected using a web-based survey fielded in November 2005. Mental health measures were assessed using previously validated instruments such as the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) for depression and anxiety and the SCOFF instrument for eating disorders. Information about lifetime diagnoses was also collected. Non-respondent bias in the sample was evaluated using a variety of methods, most notably a shorter follow-up survey for a subset of non-respondents.

Findings:

2,940 students responded to the survey (58% response rate), and non-respondent bias was minimal. Prevalence rates of probable disorders were the following: major depression, 7 percent; other depression, 9 percent; panic disorder, 2 percent; generalized anxiety disorder, 4 percent; eating disorders, 18 percent. Three percent of respondents had suicidal thoughts in the past four weeks and 10 percent engaged in non-suicidal self-injury behavior (such as cutting). Nineteen percent had previous diagnoses of a mental disorder, with mood disorders most common (11 percent).

Discussion:

Mental health problems, particularly depression and eating disorders, are prominent among university students. We must address these problems in order to provide a healthy learning environment during a critical developmental period.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe the prevalence of the most common mental health problems in a large, representative university student sample.
• Describe how these rates vary by gender, race/ethnicity, and other characteristics of students.
• Discuss how well these findings are likely to generalize to other universities and how related research efforts will address this issue in the near future.

Keywords: Students, Mental Health Services

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered

Handout (.ppt format, 93.5 kb)