Growing Up Faster: College Students' Maturation During COVID-19
Presentation Type
Poster
Presentation Type
Submission
Keywords
Health, Wellness, COVID-19, Maturation, College, Student, Life Course
Department
Sociology
Major
Chemistry
Abstract
Understanding the student experience during the height of COVID-19 and if and how it is linked to changes in healthcare activities and perceptions of health is crucial for universities to understand how to best care for their students in the transition back to in-person learning. This study explores the accelerated maturation of college students initiated by COVID-19, adding to sociological literature on emerging adulthood (Arnett 2004) with possible variations by gender and socioeconomic status. Thirty college students from around the U.S. were interviewed about their experiences during COVID-19 and how that has shaped their understanding of health and changed utilization of wellness practices. Researchers used Grounded Theory methodology (Saldaña 2021), facilitating understanding of emerging themes. One of the themes that emerged is the accelerated maturation of college students initiated by COVID-19, as the pandemic provided college students with a period of introspection in a way never possible outside the circumstances of a global lockdown. Indications of sped up maturation manifested as the implementation of positive coping mechanisms previously modeled by parental figures as well as new good habits upon returning to college after the initial pandemic lockdown. Concurrent with that maturation, we saw further discussions based around positive coping mechanisms and changes in the understanding of the importance of mental health, which may point towards directions for future research in relation to the accelerated maturation college students have experienced due to COVID-19.
Saldaña J. (2021). “The coding manual for qualitative researchers.” Sage Publications.
Arnett, J. J. (2004). Emerging adulthood: The winding road from the late teens through the twenties. Oxford University Press.
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Anna Penner
Funding Source or Research Program
Academic Year Undergraduate Research Initiative
Location
Waves Cafeteria
Start Date
24-3-2023 2:00 PM
End Date
24-3-2023 4:00 PM
Growing Up Faster: College Students' Maturation During COVID-19
Waves Cafeteria
Understanding the student experience during the height of COVID-19 and if and how it is linked to changes in healthcare activities and perceptions of health is crucial for universities to understand how to best care for their students in the transition back to in-person learning. This study explores the accelerated maturation of college students initiated by COVID-19, adding to sociological literature on emerging adulthood (Arnett 2004) with possible variations by gender and socioeconomic status. Thirty college students from around the U.S. were interviewed about their experiences during COVID-19 and how that has shaped their understanding of health and changed utilization of wellness practices. Researchers used Grounded Theory methodology (Saldaña 2021), facilitating understanding of emerging themes. One of the themes that emerged is the accelerated maturation of college students initiated by COVID-19, as the pandemic provided college students with a period of introspection in a way never possible outside the circumstances of a global lockdown. Indications of sped up maturation manifested as the implementation of positive coping mechanisms previously modeled by parental figures as well as new good habits upon returning to college after the initial pandemic lockdown. Concurrent with that maturation, we saw further discussions based around positive coping mechanisms and changes in the understanding of the importance of mental health, which may point towards directions for future research in relation to the accelerated maturation college students have experienced due to COVID-19.
Saldaña J. (2021). “The coding manual for qualitative researchers.” Sage Publications.
Arnett, J. J. (2004). Emerging adulthood: The winding road from the late teens through the twenties. Oxford University Press.