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Brain Sciences
Special Issues
The Effect of COVID-19 on Youth Mental Health
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The Effect of COVID-19 on Youth Mental Health

A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 May 2024 | Viewed by 1695

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Lauri Jensen-Campbell

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
Interests: adolescence; peer victimization; loneliness; mental health; social pain
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Priya Iyer-Eimerbrink

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor Assistant
Department of Psychology, The University of North Texas at Dallas, Dallas, TX 75241, USA
Interests: agression; peer victimization; violence; morality; mental health; development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Mental health challenges are a leading contributor to childhood disability worldwide.  Approximately 15% of youth have a mental health disorder, with documentation of more than half of these illnesses beginning before 14 years of age (Polanczyk et al., 2015).  When considering this time in terms of years lived with a disability (YLDs), mental health disorders account for over a third of the patient’s life, causing an approximate 13% decrease in life years due to premature mortality or living in a state of less-than-full health (i.e., disability-adjusted life years (DALYs)) (Bruha et al., 2018). Given these statistics, childhood mental health has become a global priority. Of growing concern is how the current pandemic has further impacted the mental health of children. Increasing evidence suggests that psychosocial factors associated with the continuing pandemic may be exacerbating mental health issues in youth worldwide.

To address this timely and important topic, we welcome articles from across the globe that address how psychosocial factors related to COVID-19 may influence childhood mental health, specifically surrounding externalizing and internalizing disorders. 

For this Special Issue, childhood includes children, adolescents, and emerging adults and psychosocial factors of interest may include, but are not limited to, remote learning, social isolation, changes in social media usage, fear of the virus, changes in physical activity or sleep quality, or experiencing a trauma such a losing a family member due to COVID-19. Both reviews and original research will be considered.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Children.

Dr. Lauri Jensen-Campbell
Guest Editor

Dr. Priya Iyer-Eimerbrink
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Brain Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • COVID-19
  • depression
  • anxiety
  • internalizing problems
  • loneliness
  • psychosocial factors
  • social isolation
  • externalizing problems
  • social media usage
  • remote learning

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 572 KiB  
Article
Comparison of Depressive Symptoms between International and Domestic Students in a Japanese University: Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Pandemic
by Yuki Shiratori, Takafumi Ogawa, Miho Ota, Noriko Sodeyama, Tetsuaki Arai and Hirokazu Tachikawa
Brain Sci. 2024, 14(5), 447; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci14050447 - 29 Apr 2024
Viewed by 180
Abstract
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic led to significant lifestyle changes and uncertainties, triggering a secondary wave of mental health issues in society. University students are especially susceptible to mental disorders. International students are considered more vulnerable due to limited emotional and financial support from [...] Read more.
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic led to significant lifestyle changes and uncertainties, triggering a secondary wave of mental health issues in society. University students are especially susceptible to mental disorders. International students are considered more vulnerable due to limited emotional and financial support from their families and difficulties accessing community support. Hence, we conducted a longitudinal analysis to compare depressive symptoms among international students before and during the pandemic. Methods: Data from depression screenings conducted at the University of Tsukuba in 2019 and 2020 were utilized. We included all students enrolled in 2019 who underwent health check-ups in both 2019 and 2020. Participants completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), enabling a comparison of item scores between domestic and international students. Psychopathological network analysis was employed to examine relationships among the items. Results: Prior to the pandemic, international students generally exhibited relatively good mental health compared with domestic students. During the 2020 pandemic, no significant difference was observed, but international students tended to demonstrate better mental health. However, network analysis revealed intergroup variations in the relationships among PHQ-9 items, with concentration problems and suicidal thoughts being more prominent among international students. Conclusion: This study’s findings suggest that young people studying abroad experience mental health crises similar to their domestic counterparts. Nevertheless, the patterns of these crises may differ between the two groups. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of COVID-19 on Youth Mental Health)
21 pages, 392 KiB  
Article
Do Social Support and Loneliness Influence Emerging Adults’ Mental Health during the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic?
by Lauri A. Jensen-Campbell, Angela Liegey Dougall, Abigail C. Heller, Priya Iyer-Eimerbrink, Michelle K. Bland and Kristen Hull
Brain Sci. 2023, 13(12), 1691; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13121691 - 07 Dec 2023
Viewed by 1299
Abstract
Youths’ mental health is at a crisis level, with mental health problems doubling in the US since the pandemic began. To compound the mental health crisis, there is a global loneliness epidemic, with emerging adults worldwide experiencing some of the highest rates. One [...] Read more.
Youths’ mental health is at a crisis level, with mental health problems doubling in the US since the pandemic began. To compound the mental health crisis, there is a global loneliness epidemic, with emerging adults worldwide experiencing some of the highest rates. One study with two phases examined the influence of social support and loneliness on mental health in US emerging adults during the pandemic, including changes in these relationships over one year. Emerging adults (N = 449) completed online questionnaires via Prolific in May 2020 (Phase 1) and again from January to May 2021 (N = 253; Phase 2). More perceived support was related to reduced loneliness, with family support having the most significant influence. Loneliness mediated the link between perceived support and adverse health outcomes. Higher loneliness predicted more perceived stress and sleep difficulties concurrently and over time. There was a bidirectional relationship between loneliness and depression, such that higher levels of either variable at Time 1 predicted increases in the other over time. Results highlight the detrimental impact of loneliness on emerging adults’ mental health. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of COVID-19 on Youth Mental Health)
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