Aspects of online college science courses that alleviate and exacerbate undergraduate depression

Depression is a top mental health concern among college students, yet there is a lack of research exploring how online college science courses can exacerbate or alleviate their depression. We surveyed 2,175 undergraduates at a large research-intensive institution about the severity of their depressi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2022-06, Vol.17 (6), p.e0269201-e0269201
Main Authors: Busch, Carly A, Mohammed, Tasneem F, Nadile, Erika M, Cooper, Katelyn M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biology and Life Sciences
College students
Colleges & universities
COVID-19
Depression, Mental
Distance learning
Health aspects
Internet
Medicine and Health Sciences
Mental depression
Mental health
Online education
Online instruction
People and Places
Psychological aspects
Regression analysis
Research and Analysis Methods
Risk factors
Sciences education
Social Sciences
Students
Surveys
Teachers
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Summary:Depression is a top mental health concern among college students, yet there is a lack of research exploring how online college science courses can exacerbate or alleviate their depression. We surveyed 2,175 undergraduates at a large research-intensive institution about the severity of their depression in large-enrollment online science courses. The survey also explored aspects of online science courses that exacerbate or alleviate depression and we used regression analyses to assess whether demographics predicted responses. Over 50% of undergraduates reported experiencing depression and LGBTQ+ students, financially unstable students, and lower division students were more likely to experience severe rather than mild depression compared to their counterparts. Students reported difficulty building relationships and struggling to perform well online as aspects of online science courses that exacerbated their depression and the flexible nature of online courses and caring instructors as aspects of online courses that alleviated their depression. This study provides insight into how instructors can create more inclusive online learning environments for students with depression.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0269201