The Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on University Students’ Well-Being and Students’ Coping Strategies: A Qualitative Approach
Pelagia Ant. Stravakou, Evangelia Ch. Lozgka
Abstract
Ever since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, numerous studies have shown up investigating the negative ramifications of this crisis for university students, who are considered to be a vulnerable population. So far, however, the positive consequences of the pandemic for university students as well as how the crisis may have impacted young people’s resilience have not been explored. Unlike previously published research on the topic, this small case study attempted to explore any university students’ views regarding how the Covid-19 pandemic affected them and how they tried to mitigate the pandemic’s effects. To allow participants to freely express themselves, their written texts about the topic were used as a research tool, whereas qualitative content analysis was used as a research method. Eighty-seven undergraduate students took part voluntarily in the research. Findings indicated that the pandemic has greatly and negatively affected the students’ emotional, psychological, and mental state, who experienced mainly fear and anxiety. At the same time, however, they received valuable lessons for life, realizing that nothing is a given and that they must live life to the fullest. In parallel with experiencing the alienation from their social environment and their psychological fatigue; the participants, due to their isolation, turned to themselves, revised things, and evolved personally, increasing also their resilience to difficult conditions. Although the students did not mention extensively to have employed coping strategies, those strategies mentioned were constructive. The research findings are discussed in terms of their implications regarding students’ support in the educational process and generally their support by universities after the health crisis.