Running head: Mental Health and Today’s Student 1

Mental Health and How it Impacts Today’s Student

Heather Hill

Western Carolina University

Mental Health and How it Impacts Today’s Student

One of the challenges of higher education is related to the student’s overall well-being

and the various stressors that contribute to the mental health disorders in college students during

this time of growth in their lives. Mental health disorders often occur during the ages of 18-24,

which is often the time for students to be enrolled in college. These disorders are often associated

with a negative stigma due to lack of knowledge (DiPlacito-DeRango, 2016). Therefore, many

students feel discouraged to seek resources and appropriate treatment (DiPlacito-DeRango,

2016). The proper utilization of the counseling and psychological services provided at the

institutions is imperative toward their educational progression, yet many of those with a mental

health disorder go undiagnosed (DiPlacito-DeRango, 2016). Many of the students who

experience mental health disorders and go untreated eventually drop out of college due to the

disorder (Conley et al., 2015). Mental health can also have an impact on the student’s overall

well-being, education, and quality of life when left untreated (Quinn et al., 2009). In addition to

the negative effects that this has on students, mental health issues also impact the institution’s

retention rates (Eisenburg et al., 2016). Institutions of higher education present themselves with a

unique opportunity in identifying and treating these disorders due to the many aspects of the

student’s life that they are involved in, including areas in residential living, student life,

academics, and more. In this paper, I review research written on mental health in college

students, discuss theoretical framework, and present multiple possible interventions for the issue

highlighting those challenges.

Literature Review

The literature on mental health and higher education suggests that post-secondary

institutions are failing students in three key ways – A, B, and C. First, there is a perceived stigma

that causes students, faculty and staff to be reluctant to identify mental health issues and utilize

proper services such as counseling centers due to the negative associations with mental health

(Quinn et al., 2009). Mental health stigma is still present in today’s schools despite efforts to be

free of discrimination (Quinn et al., 2009). One study suggests that efforts made to reduce

personal stigma would increase those who sought help when needed (Eisenburg et al., 2009). An

effort to create a change in perception of mental health disorders on behalf of post-secondary

institutions would greatly benefit both the student and institution, and may increase the number

of those who seek treatment (DiPlacito-DeRango, 2016). According to the National Alliance on

Mental Illness, one in every four students have a diagnosable illness, and nearly half of those

students do not seek help (NAMI, 2012). Additionally, 64% of those students who experience

problems with mental health in college and withdraw from school because of their mental health

issues (NAMI, 2012). If the stigma were reduced, this would impact the student population in a

positive way and students would have a greater chance of identifying and learning coping

strategies rather than withdrawing from school or allowing their grades to suffer (DiPlacito-

DeRango, 2016). Efforts to reduce stigma could consist of designing programs to increase

overall awareness of mental health not only for students, but also faculty and staff members

(DiPlacito-DeRango, 2016). It is important for this to be covered across the entire institution, as

stigmas can affect whether or not faculty or staff address mental health when they see signs of

onset issues (Diplacito-Derango, 2016).

Second, some literature suggests a greater need for access to mental health training for

both faculty and staff within the field (Quinn et al., 2009). Mental Health First Aid training is a

popular resource that is available but is one of the only training opportunities set in place for

such a topic. This training has proved to be effective by improving the employee’s confidence

that they can assist someone with such a disorder and guide them toward professional help

(Reavley & Jorm, 2009). The literature implies it would be beneficial to incorporate mental

health training in professional development opportunities that are already taking place to remain

budget-friendly (Diplaciro-Derango, 2016). It is important for a faculty or staff members to have

the ability to help identify mental health-related issues in order to encourage appropriate

professional help; however, this is nearly impossible when there is a lack of understanding of

what those issues entail (Quinn et al., 2009). One article indicated that if student support staff

were trained appropriately, they could assist with prevention programs for the student. This

could be done by providing trainings on how to deal and cope with mental health issues by

utilizing a behavioral skills training session to students and by providing accurate information

relating to mental health (Conley et al., 2015).

Third, having policies laid out on how administrators should address mental health

concerns with their students is an imperative part of the process in helping with this issue. One

study suggested that mental health issues should immediately be defined and identified for each

student at the institution upon application to the college (Quinn et al., 2009). The study also

suggested that the students should be notified of how the information would be used in order to

benefit them by providing them with appropriate help, support, and resources (Quinn et al.,

2009). If mental health issues were defined and identified early in the student’s collegiate career,

the institution would have the opportunity for early intervention. In addition, policies and
MENTAL HEALTH AND TODAY’S STUDENT 5

guidelines should be laid out for education administrators on how to react and the appropriate

steps to take in the event that they encounter a student displaying or disclosing a mental health

issue (Diplacito-Derango, 2016).

Theoretical Framework

One theory that could serve as a foundation to an intervention related to the concern of

mental health and college students is Sanford’s Challenge and Support Theory, (1967). The main

focus of psychosocial theories lies on the issues that can happen during a person’s lifespan

(Schuh et al., 2017). Sanford’s theory suggests that there is a particular balance of both challenge

and support that an institution should provide to the student to allow growth but to prevent an

overwhelming sensation of the student’s emotions (Schuh et al., 2017). Different levels of

challenge and support are necessary for different types of students, which makes this a quite

complicated theory to implement. As the student enters into a college setting, they are also

making a transition from late adolescence to young adulthood. During this transition, the student

is still in a developmental stage of their life. The Challenge and Support Theory states that if the

new environment presents too much challenge for the student, the individual will potentially

change behavior, solidify their current behavior, escape the challenge if necessary or ignore the

challenge (Schuh et al., 2017). The theory also suggests that the amount of challenge a person

can handle depends on the amount of available support that they have (Schuh et al., 2017). With

the number of mental health issues on the rise in college settings, it begs the question of whether

these students are receiving too much challenge and not enough support from their institutions.

One main purpose of higher education is to challenge the student’s thinking, and determine

whether the necessary resources for such challenges are being provided. If resources are

available for students with mental health disabilities, the institution should reflect on whether
MENTAL HEALTH AND TODAY’S STUDENT 6

their students are aware of the support services that are offered and where to find them.

Reflection to this question may reveal that these services are not well marketed, or the culture of

the campus still stigmatizes these disabilities (Quinn et al., 2009). However, these services are

commonly found in departments such as counseling and psychological centers, tutoring centers,

or advising centers. Determining the issue within the institution is imperative to the success and

overall mental well-being of the student. This may prevent students who are experiencing these

issues from feeling overwhelmed and therefore resulting in their removal or withdrawal from the

institution.

Future Implications

The incorporation of Sanford’s Challenge and Support theory along with suggestions

from the literature on mental health related issues within higher education could provide

significant improvements in many areas of higher education. First, reducing the stigma of mental

health-related issues and the need for a support system in order to cope with certain challenges

that the institution provides is of key importance (Eisenberg et al., 2009). If students feel as if

they will be judged for seeking support systems, they will be unlikely to utilize them and may

eventually escape the challenge or drop out of school completely. To reduce the stigma, the

institution could host events in order to raise awareness of mental health disorders and also to

raise awareness that college is a time of growth and development and that needing additional

support is a normal and essential part of the educational process. The anticipated challenge for

raising awareness of mental health issues and the need for support is that the events will not be

attended or noticed by all students. This challenge can be avoided or reduced by using various

formats in order to raise awareness such as social media platforms, email, in-class discussions,

and during other highly attended events across campus. These awareness events should happen
MENTAL HEALTH AND TODAY’S STUDENT 7

frequently throughout the academic year so as not to be forgotten if focused on throughout one

smaller period of time.

Secondly, in order for a faculty or staff member to provide proper support to the student

after the challenge, it is imperative that they have proper training on how to identify a mental

health issue, as well as the proper resources on what to do and say once the issue has been

identified. The lack of training can lead professionals to shy away from identification and

intervention, which is no help to the student. The Mental Health First Aid course is a great

introduction to common mental health-related illnesses and covers how to deal with these

illnesses and also covers when to point the student to a professional. Providing access to training

across all departments would improve the skills for faculty and staff so that they truly can

support the student after they have been challenged. In addition to the Mental Health First Aid

course, there should also be specified training provided to various departments from the

counseling centers on campus that focus on popular issues that they see on their particular

campuses. The anticipated challenge for providing training on mental health related issues for

faculty and staff is a lack of time and funding. To overcome this challenge, the training for those

who do not have the funding should be conducted by the counseling centers on campus at no

cost. Time should be set aside by departmental directors in advance each academic year to

include time for this training for each of their employees. If the event is planned beforehand, the

barrier for not having enough time to complete the training will be reduced.

Lastly, the early identification of mental health issues is important so that administrators

can provide early support to the student. Sanford’s theory mentions that various levels of

challenge and support are needed for different student groups, such as first-generation students

versus students whose parents have experienced college before. Due to the variation in levels, it
MENTAL HEALTH AND TODAY’S STUDENT 8

could take the faculty or staff member a great deal of time to establish a relationship with the

student for them to develop enough trust to disclose their internal feelings. However, if this

information was disclosed early in the process with the expectation that they would be supported

in appropriate ways based on their mental health, this may be a preventative measure of students

dropping out due to too much challenge and too little support. The challenge to this is that

students would not want to self-identify this information for fear that it would hurt their chances

of admission. If the application provided appropriate information on how the provided details

would be used, that could help reduce the fear of self-disclosure. In addition, students may not

understand which mental issue they have an in turn, may be overlooked if an issue was never

reported.

Conclusion

In conclusion, mental health issues certainly have an impact on today’s students. Mental

health can be easily onset due to the age and developmental stage that students are in when they

are enrolled in college. The combination of a mental health issue as well as a challenge and

support module with too much challenge and not enough support can be devastating to the

student’s academic career and overall well-being, and can even lead them to escape the challenge

that they are experiencing or drop out of college. There are many opinions and studies rooted in

the literature on this topic as to how one should address this problem. A few of the key issues

identified throughout the literature review in this paper included a reduction of stigma related to

mental health, appropriate training for the professionals in the industry, and the early

identification of mental health issues so that appropriate support and prevention programs can be

provided immediately. These issues can be overcome by the institution prioritizing mental health

and providing key opportunities for both student and staff members to learn more about mental
MENTAL HEALTH AND TODAY’S STUDENT 9

health and appropriate early identification methods as well as appropriate coping strategies. The

challenges of the solutions include a lack of overall attendance at the awareness events, a lack of

time and funding for training and a fear of self-identifying mental health issues or a lack of

knowledge that there is an issue present. In future research, these suggestions should be

implemented and the results should be measured as to whether this helped retain students who

experienced a mental health issue. Measurements should also include attendance of each event

for both student events and training events for employees. If these suggestions were put into

action, it could lead to great success for those suffering from mental health issues.
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References:

Conley, C.S., Durlak, J.A., & Kirsch, A.C. (2015). A meta-analysis of universal mental health

prevention programs for higher education students. Prevention Science, 16, 487-507.

DiPlacito-DeRango, M. L. (2016). Acknowledge the barriers to better the practices: support for

student mental health in higher education. Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of

Teaching & Learning, 7(2), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.5206/cjsotl-rcacea.2016.2.2

Eisenberg, D., Downs, M. F., Golberstein, E., & Zivin, K. (2009). Stigma and help seeking for

mental health among college students. Medical Care Research and Review, 66(5), 522–

541. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077558709335173

Eisenberg, D., Lipson, S. K., & Posselt, J. (2016). Promoting resilience, retention, and mental

health. New Directions for Student Services, 2016(156), 87-

95. https://doi.org/10.1002/ss.20194

NAMI. (2012). College Survey. Retrieved from https://www.nami.org/Press-Media/Press-

Releases/2012/College-Survey-50-Percent-of-College-Students-with

Quinn, N., Wilson, A., MacIntyre, G., & Tinklin, T. (2009). People look at you differently:

Students’ experience of mental health support within higher education. British Journal of

Guidance & Counselling, 37(4), 405–418. https://doi.org/10.1080/03069880903161385

Reavley, N., & Jorm, A. F. (2010). Prevention and early intervention to improve mental health in

higher education students: a review. Early Intervention in Psychiatry, 4(2), 132–142.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-7893.2010.00167.x

Schuh, J. H., Jones, S. R., & Torres, V. (2017). Student services: A handbook for the profession.

San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.