Meta-Analysis of Psychological Interventions for Reducing Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

(1) Background: The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of internet-based intervention programs for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic by conducting a meta-analysis. (2) Methods: Searches were conducted in the following databases: MEDLINE, EbscoHost Academic Search Ultimate, and PsycArticles, using a combination of “Covid-19 AND ‘Randomized Controlled Trial’ AND students”, as well as a combination of the following search terms: “internet”, “online”, “treat_”, “psycholog_”, “intervention”, “program_”, “stress_”, “depress_”, “anxiety”, “university”, “college”, ”freshm_”, “sophomore_”, and “undergraduat_”. The population, intervention, control, outcomes, and study design (PICOS) framework was used (P (population): university students during the COVID-19 pandemic; I (intervention): internet-based intervention programs for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression; C (control): no intervention, usual care, or on a waiting list; O (outcomes): stress, anxiety, and depression indicators; S (study design): meta-analysis including only randomized controlled trials (RCTs)). A meta-analysis was performed on the 10 retrieved studies published between 2021 and 2022. Only RCTs were analyzed. (3) Results: All 10 analyzed papers revealed a trend in the effectiveness of internet-based intervention for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression in university students during COVID-19. Significant effects from the included RCTs with interventions for reducing stress and depression were established. (4) Conclusions: Psychological internet-based interventions may help to reduce depression and stress among university students; however, more research is needed to determine their effectiveness in reducing anxiety.

Perceived Academic Stress and Social Support among University Undergraduate Students During COVID–19 Pandemic

“…The present study has revealed that university undergraduate students' total perceived academic stress levels were higher after the first wave than those of after the second wave of COVID-19 (effect size was week, Cohen's d = 0.49), what is in agreement with the data found by Rogowska et al (2021b), where the differences between waves in perceived stress "were significant, with moderate effect size, χ 2 (2) = 152.69, p < 0.001, Cramer's V = 0.28)" (Rogowska et al, 2021b, p. 6) or with the data found by Panteli et al (2021), where effect size was small (Cohen's d = 0.37). The present research data may be explained by the data of meta-analysis (Malinauskas, Malinauskiene, 2022), which emphasises that during the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic, undergraduates' perceived stress have only increased. "Students experiencing worsened depressive symptoms, diminished sleep quality, increased anxiety, social disconnectedness, an absence of peer support, loneliness, gloom, and outrage" (Malinauskas, Malinauskiene, 2022: 2).…”

How Did COVID-19 Affect Education and What Can Be Learned Moving Forward?

“…The majority of the online interventions were effective in promoting well-being of higher education students during the pandemic based on evidence from randomized clinical trials, quasiexperimental studies, and cohort or case-control studies (da Silva et al, 2022; Malinauskas & Malinauskiene, 2022; Riboldi et al, 2022). Within this, particularly online group mindfulness techniques and web-based cognitive behavioral therapies (da Silva et al, 2022), multicomponent online positive psychology interventions (Malinauskas & Malinauskiene, 2022), and individually catered cognitive behavioral therapies, dialectical behavior therapies, and mind-body practice techniques (Riboldi et al, 2022) emerged as being effective.…”

The Use of Photoplethysmography in the Assessment of Mental Health: Scoping Review

“…High psychological stress has been linked to anxiety and depression [ 25 , 26 ]; hence, evaluating it in patients with clinical anxiety is relevant for monitoring its progression. Stress is also a risk factor for mental health problems and can be managed through psychological interventions [ 27 , 28 ]. In addition, studies evaluating other symptoms in patients with mental health problems that came up in the search were included if they involved intrusive thoughts or suicidal thoughts and suicidal ideation.…”