Abstract

A large portion of college students have been diagnosed with a mental health disorder and that number is climbing. Most of these students are not receiving treatment, and university counseling centers are unable to meet the increasing demands. The purpose of this study is to fill gaps in this literature by doing an early analysis of a larger, multi-year quasi-experimental study to assess the impact of college mental wellness courses on self-health measures and mental health resource utilization rates. The validated instruments used for evaluating self-health measures and mental health resource utilization were the Physical Activity Vital Sign (PAVS) Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms-62 (CCAPS-62), and Client Service Receipt Inventory (CSRI). Surveys were administered at four-time points: pre-course, midcourse, post-course, and 3-month follow-up. Repeated measures ANOVA was used for within groups analysis for the longitudinal changes in the groups over time. Independent t-tests were used for between groups analyses between the control and WellCoR groups at each time point. Only one area of statistical significance was found in all the analyses: the within group longitudinal comparison for the CCAPS-62 subscale Academic Distress in the control group (F=3.569, p=0.019). The lack of findings contradicts some, but not all, of the research in this area. More research using larger samples with longer follow-up is needed to determine what, if any, effect college mental wellness courses have on self-health measures and mental health resource utilization.

Degree

College and Department

Nursing; Nursing

Rights

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