UNIVERSITY STUDENT ADAPTATION AND MENTAL HEALTH: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Sahão, Fernanda Torres; Kienen, Nádia

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Psicologia Escolar e Educacional

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PAPER • Psicol. Esc. Educ. 25 • 2021 • https://doi.org/10.1590/2175-35392021224238 copy

UNIVERSITY STUDENT ADAPTATION AND MENTAL HEALTH: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

ABSTRACT

Students’ mental health and their adaptation to the university have been investigated in several studies. The present study aimed to carry out a systematic review of the literature about the variables related to the students’ adaptation to higher education that influence their mental health. A bibliographic search was carried out in six national and international databases, with 23 articles selected for analysis from six categories: difficulties and facilitators of adaptation, consequences of non-adaptation, symptoms, required repertoire and teaching strategies. The results indicate that the main obstacles are the level of demand and interpersonal relationships. As facilitators, support network, the availability of information, and academic integration. Anxiety, stress and depression were the main symptoms; repertoires of autonomy and commitment were most required for a healthy adaptation to university. There is a lack of research that characterizes the behaviors that make up these repertoires, which would lead to better interventions with this population.

Keywords:
higher education; adjustment; literature review

Code	Full reference
Art. 1	Ababu, G. B.; Yigzaw, A. B.; Besene, Y. D.; Alemu, W. G. (2018). Prevalence of adjustment problem and its predictors among first-year undergraduate students in Ethiopian university: A cross-sectional institution based study. Psychiatry Journal, 2018, 1-7. doi: 10.1155/2018/5919743
Art. 2	Barbosa, M. M. F.; Oliveira, M.C.; Melo-Silva, L. L.; Taveira, M. C. (2018). Delineamento e avaliação de um programa de adaptação acadêmica no ensino superior. Revista Brasileira de Orientação Profissional, 19(1), 61-74. doi: 1026707/1984-7270/2019v19n1p61
Art. 3	Bore, M., Pittolo; C., Kirby, D.; Dluzewska, T.; Marlin, S. (2016). Predictors of psychological distress and well-being in a sample of Australian undergraduate students. Higher Education Research & Development, 35(5), 869-880. doi: 10.1080/07294360.2016.1138452
Art. 4	Fernández-Rodríguez, C.; Soto-López, T.; Cuesta, M. (2019). Needs and demands for psychological care in university students. Psicothema, 31(4), 414-421. doi:10.7334/psicothema2019.78
Art. 5	Hartley, M. T. (2011). Examining the relationships between resilience, mental health, and academic persistence in undergraduate college students. Journal of American College Health, 59(7), 596-604. doi:10.1080/07448481.2010.515632
Art. 6	Igue, E. A.; Bariani, I. C. B.; Milanesi, P. V. B. (2008). Vivência acadêmica e expectativas de universitários ingressantes e concluintes. Psico-USF, 13(2), 155-164. doi: 10.1590/S1413-82712008000200003
Art. 7	Klainin-Yobas, P.; Ramirez, D.; Fernandez, Z.; Sarmiento, J.; Thanoi, W.; Ignacio, J.; Lau, Y. (2016). Examining the predicting effect of mindfulness on psychological well-being among undergraduate students: A structural equation modelling approach. Personality and Individual Differences, 91, 63-68. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2015.11.034
Art. 8	Levin, M. E.; Pistorello, J.; Seeley, J. R.; Hayes, S. C. (2014). Feasibility of a prototype web-based acceptance and commitment therapy prevention program for college students. Journal of American College Health, 62(1), 20-30. doi:10.1080/07448481.2013.843533.
Art. 9	Macaskill, A. (2018). Undergraduate mental health issues: The challenge of the second year of study. Journal of mental health (Abingdon, England), 27(3), 214-221. doi: 10.1080/09638237.2018.1437611
Art. 10	Moreno, P. F.; Soares, A. B. (2014). O que vai acontecer quando eu estiver na universidade? Expectativas de jovens estudantes brasileiros. Aletheia, (45), 114-127. Recovered from http://pepsic.bvsalud.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1413-03942014000200009&lng=pt&tlng=pt.
Art. 11	Oliveira, C. T.; Dias, A. C. G. (2014). Dificuldades na trajetória universitária e rede de apoio de calouros e formandos. Psico, 45(2), 187-97. doi https://doi.org/10.15448/1980-8623.2014.2.13347
Art. 12	Oliveira, C. T.; Dias, A. C. G.; Piccoloto, N. M. (2013). Contributions of cognitive behavioral therapy for difficulties in college adjustment. Revista Brasileira de Terapias Cognitivas, 9(1), 10-18. doi:10.5935/1808-5687.20130003.
Art. 13	Oliveira, C. T. de; Santos, A. S. dos; Dias, A. C. G. (2016). Expectativas de universitários sobre a universidade: sugestões para facilitar a adaptação acadêmica. Revista Brasileira de Orientação Profissional, 17(1), 43-53. Recovered from http://pepsic.bvsalud.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1679-33902016000100006&lng=pt&tlng=pt.
Art. 14	Polydoro, S. A. J.; Primi, R.; Serpa, M. N. F.; Zaroni, M. M. H.; Pombal, K. C. P. (2001). Desenvolvimento de uma escala de integração ao ensino superior. Psico-USF, 6(1), 11-17. doi:10.1590/S1413-82712001000100003.
Art. 15	Ridner, S. L.; Newton, K. S.; Staten, R. R.; Crawford, T. N.; Hall, L. A. (2016). Predictors of well-being among college students. Journal of American College Health, 64(2), 116-124. doi:10.1080/07448481.2015.1085057.
Art. 16	Sarriera, J. C.; Paradiso, A. C.; Schütz, F. F.; Howes, G. P. (2012). Estudo comparativo da integração ao contexto universitário entre estudantes de diferentes instituições. Revista Brasileira de Orientação Profissional, 13(2), 163-172. Recovered from http://pepsic.bvsalud.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S16793902012000200004&lng=pt&tlng=pt.
Art. 17	Schweitzer, R. D. (1996). Problems and awareness of support services among students at an urban Australian university. Journal of American College Health, 45(2), 73-77. doi:10.1080/07448481.1996.9936865.
Art. 18	Soares, A. B.; Francischetto, V.; Dutra, B. M.; Miranda, J. M.; Nogueira, C. C. C.; Leme, V. R.; Araújo, A.M.; Almeida, L. S. (2014). O impacto das expectativas na adaptação acadêmica dos estudantes no Ensino Superior. Psico-USF, 19(1), 49-60. doi:10.1590/S1413-82712014000100006
Art. 19	Stoliker, B. E.; Lafreniere, K. D. (2015). The influence of perceived stress, loneliness, and learning burnout on university students’ educational experience. College Student Journal, 49(1), 146-160.
Art. 20	Teixeira, M. A. P.; Castro, A. K. S. S.; Zoltowski, A. P. C. (2012). Integração acadêmica e integração social nas primeiras semanas na universidade: percepções de estudantes universitários. Gerais: Revista Interinstitucional de Psicologia, 5(1), 69-85. Recovered from de:http://pepsic.bvsalud.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1983-82202012000100006&lng=pt&tlng=pt.
Art. 21	Teixeira, M. A. P.; Castro, G. D.; Piccolo, L. D. R. (2007). Adaptação à universidade em estudantes universitários: Um estudo correlacional. Interação em Psicologia, 11(2), 211-220. doi:10.5380/psi.v11i2.7466.
Art. 22	Teixeira, M. A. P.; Dias, A. C. G.; Wottrich, S. H.; Oliveira, A. M. (2008). Adaptação à universidade em jovens calouros. Psicologia Escolar e Educacional, 12(1), 185-202. doi:10.1590/S1413-85572008000100013.
Art. 23	Withey, L.; Fox, C. L.; Hartley, J. (2014). ‘I cannot mess this up anymore’: The experiences of undergraduates who withdraw and start again elsewhere. Psychology Teaching Review, 20(1), 78-89.

Code. article	Course (year)	Participants		Instruments	Research design
Code. article	Course (year)	Qty.	age
Art. 1	N. E (first year)	633	N.E.	- Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ)	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 2	Psychology, Environmental Engineering and Production Engineering, Nursing, Physiotherapy, Food Engineering, Medicine, Electrical Engineering, Physics and Nutrition (first to fourth year)	22	18-25	- Academic Adjustment Questionnaire	Action research with a near-experimental design
Art. 2		22	18-25	- Career Adaptability Scale	Action research with a near-experimental design
Art. 3	N.E(first and last year)	150	M=23,2	- Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10)	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
				- General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12)
				- Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI)
				- Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well Being Scale (WEMWBS)
				- Brief Resilience Scale (BRS)
Art. 4	Health Sciences, Sciences, Engineering, Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities (sophomore year)	706	M=20,2	- Evaluation of the Need for Psychological Assistance	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
				-Questionnaire (NPAQ)
				- Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)
Art. 5	Arts, Biology, Science, Communication, Education, Journalism, Psychology (first and last year)	605	M=21,03	-Variables Related to Academic Persistence and Demographics	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
				- Sense of Belonging (SOB)- Connor
				-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC)
				- Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ-6)
				- Mental Health Inventory-5 (MHI-5)
Art. 6	Psychology (second, third and fourth year)	203	M=20,17	- Academic Experiences Questionnaire	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
				- Reduced Version (QVA-r)
				- Question about the expectations at the entrance
Art. 7	Administration, Arts Sciences, Nursing, Medicine, Health (first year)	630	M=19,56	- Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWB)	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
				- The mindful attention awareness scale (MAAS)-
				- The Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES)
				-The 12-item multi-dimensional scale of perceived social support (MSS)
Art. 8	N.E (first year)	76	M=18,37	- System Usability Scale (SUS)- ACT Knowledge Questionnaire	Group experimental with pre and post test and follow up
				- Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS)
				- Acceptance and Action
				-Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II)
				- Personal Values Questionnaire (PVQ)
Art. 9	Criminology, Law, Geography, English, Education, Sociology, Politics and Psychology (sophomore year)	23	M=20,81	- Interview	Qualitative descriptive
Art. 9		23	M=20,81	- General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ- 28)	Qualitative descriptive
Art. 10	Administration, Biomedicine, Engineering, Nursing, Statistics, History, Mathematics, Psychology (first and last year)	13	M=19,54	- Semi-structured interview	Qualitative descriptive
Art. 11	Economics, Psychology (N.E)	24	17-26	- Semi-structured interview	Qualitative descriptive
Art. 12	Administration, Agribusiness, Performing Arts, Biological Sciences, Accounting Sciences, Special Education, Nursing, Speech Therapy, Mathematics, Veterinary Medicine, Information Systems, Superior in Grain Production (first, penultimate and last year)	504	M=23,5	- Open question about the main difficulties encountered in the academic context during the first year of graduation	Qualitative descriptive
Art. 13	Economics, Psychology (N.E)	20	M=21,95	Semi-structured interview	Qualitative descriptive
Art. 14	Systems Analysis, Computer Engineering, Pharmacy, Letters, Mechatronics, Dentistry, Psychology (N.E)	633	N.E.	- Integration Scale to Higher Education (EIES)	Correlacional
Art. 15	N.E (N.E)	568	M=20,4	- The National College Health Assessment (NCHA II)	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 15	N.E (N.E)	568	M=20,4	- The Public Health Surveillance Well-Being Scale (PHS-WB)	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 16	Psychology (N.E)	273	M=23,89	- Academic Experiences Questionnaire	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 17	Law, Engineering, Humanities (first year)	441	N.E.	- Reduced Version (QVA-r)	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 17	Law, Engineering, Humanities (first year)	441	N.E.	- Questionnaire developed for the study	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 18	Medicine, Others, Pedagogy, Psychology (every year)	182	M=26,2	- Academic Experiences Questionnaire	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
				- reduced version (QVA-r)
				- Academic Involvement Questionnaire (QEA) Questionnaire
				- Brazilian Economic Classification
Art. 19	Psychology (first year)	150	M=21	- Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
				- Academic Coping Strategies Scale (ACSS)
				- Maslach Burnout Inventory-Student Survey (MBI-SS)
				- Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students (UWES-S)
				- The University of California, Los Angeles Loneliness Scale-Version 3 (UCLA-3)
Art. 20	Nursing, Civil Engineering, Pharmacy, Journalism (every year)	17	18-28	- Semi-structured interview	Qualitative and exploratory with collective case study
Art. 21	Law, Psychology, Veterinary (first year)	342	M=21,2	- Academic Experiences Questionnaire	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 21	Law, Psychology, Veterinary (first year)	342	M=21,2	- reduced version (QVA-r)- Level of participation in extracurricular activities- Likert scales developed for the study	Descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational
Art. 22	Administration, Agronomy, Law, Special Education, Physical Education, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mathematics, Chemistry (N.E)	14	18-22	- Semi-structured interview	Descriptive, phenomenological qualitative
Art. 23	Social Sciences, English, Music, Politics (first and last year)	5	18-21	- Semi-structured interview	Qualitative descriptive

Facilitators of adaptation	Articles % (N)
Support network	47.8 (N=11)
Providing information	39.1 (N=9)
Academic integration	34.8 (N=8)
Characteristics of the institution - infrastructure	26.1 (N=6)
Social integration	26.1 (N=6)
Extracurricular activities	21.7 (N=5)
Pedagogical issues	21.7 (N=5)
Interpersonal relationships	17.4 (N=4)
Contact with the profession	13 (N=3)
Leisure/physical activity	13 (N=3)
Characteristics of the institution - others	8.7 (N=2)
Expectations about the transition to University	8.7 (N=2)
Difficulties for adaptation	Articles % (N)
Level of requirement	73.9 (N=17)
Interpersonal relationships	56.5 (N=13)
Distance from home	56.5 (N=13)
Lack of support network	52.2 (N=12)
Financial situation	43.5 (N=10)
Individual characteristics - cognitive and personality	39.1 (N=9)
Characteristics of higher learning	39.1 (N=9)
New responsibilities	34.8 (N=8)
Lack of information	30.4 (N=7)
Expectations regarding university life	30.4 (N=7)
Academic performance	26.1 (N=6)
Time management	26.1 (N=6)
Characteristics of the institution - curriculum	21.7 (N=5)
Characteristics of the institution - bureaucratic issues	17.4 (N=4)
Pedagogical issues	17.4 (N=4)
Emotion management repertoire	17.4 (N=4)
Study repertoire	13 (N=3)
Activity overload	13 (N=3)
Characteristics of the institution - infrastructure	13 (N=3)
Individual characteristics - health conditions	4.3 (N=1)
Consequences of non-adaptation	Articles % (N)
Drop out	52.2 (N=12)
Poor academic performance	34.8 (N=8)
Low commitment	13 (N=3)
Mental and physical health	13 (N=3)
Low intellectual development	8.7 (N=2)
Low personal development	8.7 (N=2)
Low motivation	8.7 (N=2)
Low professional self-efficacy	8.7 (N=2)
Low self-confidence	4.3 (N=1)
Difficulties in career progress	4.3 (N=1)
Slow professional development	4.3 (N=1)
Frustrations	4.3 (N=1)
Quality of interpersonal relationships	4.3 (N=1)

Symptoms	Articles % (N)
anxiety	52.2 (N=12)
stress	52.2 (N=12)
depression	47.8 (N=11)
Physical illnesses	4.3 (N=1)
Mood swings	4.3 (N=1)
Difficulty to concentrate	4.3 (N=1)
Psychosomatic disorders	4.3 (N=1)
Suicidal ideation	4.3 (N=1)
Eating and/or sleep disorders	4.3 (N=1)
Repertoire of students required to adapt	Articles % (N)
Autonomy	43.5 (N=10)
Commitment	34.8 (N=8)
Study behaviors	26.1 (N=6)
Emotional management	26.1 (N=6)
Self-efficiency	26.1 (N=6)
Coping	26.1 (N=6)
Adjustment	21.7 (N=5)
Vocational exploratory behavior	21.7 (N=5)
Resilience	17.4 (N=4)
Self confidence	13 (N=3)
Responsibility	13 (N=3)
Asking for help	8.7 (N=2)
Pro-activity	8.7 (N=2)
Creativity	4.3 (N=1)
Psychological flexibility	4.3 (N=1)

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