The study followed a cross sectional research design and involved 303 nursing students from the Central Philippines. Data was collected during the second month of lockdown using an online data collection survey. Questionnaires, whose predictive validity with regards to mental health had been confirmed in previous research, were used to evaluate loneliness, resilience, coping behaviors, and perceived social support. 


Macalester College

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of coping behaviors, resilience, and social support on loneliness in college students during the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdown. 

Social and emotional loneliness among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic: The predictive role of coping behaviors, social support, and personal resilience

Labrague, L. J., De Los Santos, J., & Falguera, C. C. (2021). Social and emotional loneliness among college students during the COVID-19 pandemic: The predictive role of coping behaviors, social support, and personal resilience. Perspectives in psychiatric care, 10.1111/ppc.12721. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/ppc.12721


Methods

Results indicated an increased prevalence of social and emotional loneliness as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdown, with 10.7% of students qualifying as not lonely, 56.7% as moderately lonely, and 23.6% as severely lonely. Loneliness was primarily attributed to home confinement, quarantine, social distancing, and school closure. Age and gender were both found to be predictive of loneliness, with younger age being correlated with a higher prevalence of emotional loneliness and females reporting higher levels of social loneliness. Resilience, coping behaviors, and social support were significantly associated with emotional and social loneliness, with higher ratings being correlated with lower levels of loneliness. Specifically, higher levels of emotional loneliness were correlated with lower personal resilience, and higher levels of social loneliness were associated with lower scores in coping and social support questionnaires.

Results: Loneliness Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Research on college students during the COVID-19 pandemic indicates a link between personal resilience, coping skills, social support, and reduced stress, anxiety, and depression. These factors are protective against loneliness and associated mental disorders. Consequently, this research supports implementing strategies in healthcare and education to increase resilience, social support, and coping mechanisms, such as social skills training, psycho-education, socialization, communication through social media, and familial support.

Conclusions: Protective Factors Against College Student Loneliness During the COVID-19 Pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing and remote education increased social isolation and loneliness, especially among young adults and college students. Loneliness is linked to adverse psychological consequences, including a higher risk of stress, anxiety, depression, and suicide. Because prior research identified social support, personal resilience, and coping abilities as protective factors against stress, a study was conducted to evaluate the effect of coping behaviors, resilience, and social support on loneliness in college students during the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns.

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