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1. Mental Health in Engineering Education: Identifying Population and Intersectional Variation

   https://doi.org/10.1109/TE.2022.3182626  

   Danowitz, Andrew; Beddoes, Kacey. (January 2022, IEEE transactions on education)

   Contribution: Screening rates for engineering students for several major and moderate mental health issues are reported, including unspecified psychological distress as captured by the Kessler 6 screening instrument; screening rates for depressive, anxiety, and eating disorders as measured by the patient health questionnaire (PHQ); and screening rates for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as measured by the primary care post-traumatic stress disorder (PC-PTSD) instrument. This work also explores how mental health issues affect different student demographic groups within engineering. Background: Anecdotal evidence has long suggested that stress and certain mental health issues are particularly acute in the field of Engineering, and some recent research has shown elevated rates of mental health issues at different institutions around the country. This article presents the results of a previously validated mental health survey conducted with first- and second-year students at eight universities. Intended Outcomes: A better understanding of which mental health issues affect engineering students as a population, and an understanding of what mental health disparities exist among different demographics in engineering. This information is intended to allow engineering programs, student groups, and other stakeholders to better target mental health resources for all engineering students. Application Design: This work combines several widely used population-scale mental health diagnostic tools into a single comprehensive survey instrument that was deployed to first- and second-year engineering students at eight universities nationwide. Findings: This study finds that 50% of respondents screening positive for a major mental health condition—including depression, anxiety, PTSD, an eating disorder, or major psycho- logical distress—while only 16% of respondents report having ever received a diagnosis for a mental health condition. Women respondents are more likely to screen positive for anxiety dis- orders (4.4x for panic disorder, 2.2x for other anxiety, and 1.9x for PTSD) and major depressive disorder (2.3x) relative to men. Respondents reporting physical disabilities have significantly higher likelihoods of suffering from mental health issues than peers with no reported physical disabilities and are 2.9! more likely to screen positive for PTSD. Identifying as Hispanic was also a significant predictor of major depressive disorder (3.2x more likely) and PTSD (2.5x more likely). 

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2. Effects of COVID-19 on Engineering Students’ Baseline Stress

   Danowitz, Andrew; Beddoes, Kacey (December 2020, Proceedings of the AAEE2020 Conference)

   null (Ed.)

   CONTEXT With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting response from universities, engineering students find themselves in an unprecedented situation. In addition to stressors related to the curriculum, residential students across the United States are being asked to relocate away from campus and engage in distance learning. At the same time, social distancing requirements are limiting students’ ability to socialize, procure food and supplies, exercise, and remain employed and financially solvent. Some students will fall ill while others face the prospect of sick family members, and even deaths in the family. Prior research suggests that individuals living through this pandemic are likely to face stress, uncertainty, and fear that affects their mental health and academic performance for years to come. PURPOSE OR GOAL The purpose of this study was to understand the ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting engineering students’ mental wellness, specifically stress, and how the effects differ for different groups of students. The research questions addressed are: 1) What effects has the pandemic had on baseline stress levels, and how do those vary by demographic group? 2) What effects has the pandemic had on quality of life, such as sleep habits and financial security, and how do those vary by demographic group? METHODS An online survey was conducted in the United States in May and June of 2020. More than 800 4-year engineering students who represented many engineering disciplines and universities responded. The survey used a modified version of the Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Rating Scale, which is a widely used and validated instrument to measure the effects of certain life events on stress. The data was analysed to determine the average increase in stress levels for students resulting from COVID-19, and which demographic groups have seen the most negative impact. We also report on which stress-inducing life-events were experienced most. OUTCOMES Latinx individuals and international students report statistically significantly higher levels of stress than the baseline population. Engineering students from other historically excluded identities, however,are not facing statistically significantly worse stress than their peers from historically over represented identities. Veterans fare better than the majority population on this metric.The data also indicates that different groups are more likely to experience different negative life-events because of COVID. CONCLUSIONS No previous research has examined the impacts of a global pandemic on engineering student stress and mental wellness. Our findings show that stress and mental wellness need to be understood intersectionally and that some underrepresented groups are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Understanding the impacts on students can help universities strategize and allocate limited resources most effectively to support student success. KEYWORDS Mental wellness; COVID-19; stress 

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3. Thinking Systemically to Better Serve Engineering Students’ Mental Health Needs: Policy and Process Recommendations

   Beddoes, Kacey; Danowitz, Andrew (June 2023, 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition)

   This paper summarizes the results of our NSF funded longitudinal study on mental health in engineering education. Survey instruments were used to measure the prevalence of several mental health conditions in engineering students at 8 partner institutions as they progressed through their engineering programs. This data collection began in Fall 2019, shortly before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and continued into 2021. Our results, recapitulated here, provide a unique insight into the state of mental health in engineering education during “normal times,” how it changed and worsened during the early stages of the pandemic, and how and to what extent mental health has since recovered to pre-pandemic levels. 

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4. Mental Health in Engineering Education Before, During, and After COVID-19 Related Disruptions

   Danowitz, Andrew; Beddoes, Kacey (June 2023, 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition)

   This paper summarizes the results of our NSF funded longitudinal study on mental health in engineering education. Survey instruments were used to measure the prevalence of several mental health conditions in engineering students at 8 partner institutions as they progressed through their engineering programs. This data collection began in Fall 2019, shortly before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and continued into 2021. Our results, recapitulated here, provide a unique insight into the state of mental health in engineering education during “normal times,” how it changed and worsened during the early stages of the pandemic, and how and to what extent mental health has since recovered to pre-pandemic levels. 

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5. Childhood adversity during the post‐apartheid transition and COVID ‐19 stress independently predict adult PTSD risk in urban S outh A frica: A biocultural analysis of the stress sensitization hypothesis

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24791  

   Kim, Andrew Wooyoung; Said Mohamed, Rihlat; Norris, Shane A.; Naicker, Sara; Richter, Linda M.; Kuzawa, Christopher W. (June 2023, American Journal of Biological Anthropology)

   Objectives The COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa introduced new societal adversities and mental health threats in a country where one in three individuals are expected to develop a psychiatric condition sometime in their life. Scientists have suggested that psychosocial stress and trauma during childhood may increase one's vulnerability to the mental health consequences of future stressors—a process known as stress sensitization. This prospective analysis assessed whether childhood adversity experienced among South African children across the first 18 years of life, coinciding with the post-apartheid transition, exacerbates the mental health impacts of psychosocial stress experienced during the 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic (ca. 2020–2021). Materials and Methods Data came from 88 adults who participated in a follow-up study of a longitudinal birth cohort study in Soweto, South Africa. Childhood adversity and COVID-19 psychosocial stress were assessed as primary predictors of adult PTSD risk, and an interaction term between childhood adversity and COVID-19 stress was calculated to evaluate the potential effect of stress sensitization. Results Fifty-six percent of adults exhibited moderate-to-severe PTSD symptoms. Greater childhood adversity and higher COVID-19 psychosocial stress independently predicted worse post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms in adults. Adults who reported greater childhood adversity exhibited non-significantly worse PTSD symptoms from COVID-19 psychosocial stress. Discussion These results highlight the deleterious mental health effects of both childhood trauma and COVID-19 psychosocial stress in our sample and emphasize the need for greater and more accessible mental health support as the pandemic progresses in South Africa. 

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