Distress and mental health issues among college students is an emerging topic of study. The aim of this research work is to illustrate academic and social risk factors and how they prove to be predictors of anxiety and depressive disorders. The methodology used is a cumulative literature review structured over 10 systematic phases, and is replicable. Showing considerable potential for cumulative research, the relevance of this study reflects the concern of the academic community and international governments. The articles selected range from categorization of disorders in relation to mental health, to reporting the condition of rhinestones and difficulties of students in university contexts. In conclusion, the research focusses upon predisposing, concurrent or protective factors relating to the mental health of university students, so that institutions can act on concrete dynamics or propose targeted research on this topic.

COVID-19 has caused obstacles in continuing normal life almost everywhere in the world by causing the implementation of social distancing and eventually imposing the lockdown. This has become the reason for the increase in technology usage in daily life for professional work as well as for entertainment purposes. There has been an increased prevalence of technology usage in adolescents and children during lockdown leaving its impact on their lives either in a positive or negative aspect. The overall documented percentage increase of technology usage in children was about 15%, of which smartphone usage has 61.7% of prevalence. Disturbance in brain functioning is suggested to be originated by compromise of neuroplasticity of the nerves. The radiofrequency (RF) radiations emitting from the smartphone are of doubtful concern as a brain tumor risk factor in children. The increased usage can have effects on brain functioning that will compromise sleep and cognitive abilities and develop risk for certain mental illnesses including, but not limited to, depression, anxiety, Alzheimer’s disease, and attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder (ADHD). Despite being a threat for developing mental illness, video games are proven to reduce depression and anxiety, and increase creativity, skills, and cognition in children. The increased usage of technology can have a positive and negative impact on the mental development of adolescents and children depending on the trends in the usage. However, parents should be monitoring their children’s mental health and behavior in these difficult times of pandemic.

With the increasing popularity and accessibility of video games, the public concern about their effects - positive and negative - has also increased. In this regard, this systematic review sought to identify and thematically analyze recent studies (in the last five years) and report on video games' epidemiological characteristics and outcomes. A systematic database search was done on ScienceDirect, APA PsycINFO, Emerald, and Scopus databases for articles published from January 1, 2017, to April 1, 2022. The Meta XL software - an add-in for Microsoft Excel - was used to calculate the pooled prevalence level of video game addiction. The database search yielded a total of 693 non-duplicate articles. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 27 articles were selected to be included in the systematic review. Along with this, 12 articles were considered for the final meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence level of gaming addiction was 5.0 % (95 % CI, 2.1-8.8 %). The I² value was 99.297 with a p-value of 0.000. The factors that accompanied addictive video gaming were psychological, social, and personal. An addictive gaming behavior was characterized by spending an above-average time on gaming, doing most of the gaming online, and gaming activities interfering with sleep patterns. Some predictors of addictive gaming were emotional dependence, social detachment, increased gaming time, preference for playing online than offline, and increased emotional and psychological stress. Engaging in addictive gaming led to adverse outcomes such as lower academic scores, depression, and anxiety, as well as decreased self-esteem, life satisfaction, and social support. From the collected findings it could be concluded that extreme playing of video games can be classified as addictive. Following the identification of risk factors, appropriate corrective or interventional measures should be developed and applied coherently to newer statistical data.

Background: The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic at the end of 2019 and the Russian-Ukrainian war in February 2022 created restrictions and uncertainties that affected the general population’s mental health. One of the affected groups was students. This systematic review summarizes the current literature on the prevalence, outcomes, and interventions for stress and anxiety among university, college, graduate, or postsecondary populations.Methods: A systematic literature search was performed on PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, PsychInfo, and ProQuest, following PRISMA guidelines. Specific inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied, and screening was performed to identify the definitive studies.Results: The prevalence of anxiety was relatively high, ranging from 88.9 to 13.63%, and the prevalence of stress ranged from 56 to 28.14%. The predictors of stress and anxiety included young age, gender being female, STEM course, loneliness, low academic level in school, urban lockdown, confinement, having a preexisting disease, having relatives or friends infected with COVID-19, and proximity to a COVID-19 zone. The predictors of stress included gender being female, living with family, living in a household with many people, being confined rather than having the freedom to relocate, proximity to confirmed cases of COVID-19, lack of access to materials on COVID-19, preexisting mental disorders, and lack of knowledge on the preventable nature of COVID-19. The sources of anxiety among the university students identified in the study included academics, postponement of graduation, cancelation or disruption of planned events, inability to achieve goals, and finances. In addition, the students used trauma-focused, forward-focused, task-oriented, emotion-oriented, and avoidance-oriented coping strategies.Conclusion: The included studies showed that stress and anxiety increased during the pandemic and the war, with gender and uncertainty playing a critical role. The studies provide insights into the widespread use of problem-focused and task-focused coping strategies despite their impact on increasing stress and anxiety.

The use of digital technology as the only communication and relationship channel in work, school and social contexts is bringing out dynamics that are sometimes in contrast with each other. The purpose of this article is to investigate the impact of digital technology on teachers’ school practices in the context of COVID-19. This impact was studied in relation to the constructs of motivation, perceived stress, sense of self-efficacy and resistance to/acceptance of technologies. This study examined the role played by the massive and coercive use of digital technologies (and the relationship with innovation and change) in predicting motivation and perceived stress among teachers. To this end, the impact of digital technologies on motivation and perceived stress were explored in the sample. A questionnaire consisting of three scales was administered to 688 Italian school teachers of all educational levels (from childhood to upper-secondary school), who completed a socio-demographic section, a section on the scale of the impact of technology and distance learning, a perceived stress scale and items on motivation and professional development. Descriptive and inferential analyses were applied to the data. Key findings indicated that the impact of digital technologies during the pandemic negatively correlates with both perceived stress and motivation. Practical implications were suggested to help teachers develop functional coping styles to cope with technological changes in work and life contexts.

Background: The years spent at university represent a critical period that can influence both the quality of lifestyle and the eating habits of subsequent adulthood, and also, in the long term, the health of the individual. The aim of this study was to investigate the lifestyle of university students living away from home. Methods: Each subject recruited for the study was given a questionnaire to obtain general information, eating habits and physical activity levels before (T0) and after six month of training seminars (T1). Blood pressure, body composition and questionnaire responses were investigated. Results: The main findings of this study are a significant decrement in blood pressure; an increment in physical activity practice; an increased number of subjects who pay attention to the calorific value of food and also an improvement in BIA parameters. Conclusions: In conclusion, this study demonstrated the challenges that university students face in leading a healthy lifestyle and caring for their nutritional needs, particularly when they are away from their families. No intervention specifically targets young adults, even though much emphasis is placed on the promotion of a healthy lifestyle based on a varied and balanced diet and sufficient exercise. Our study showed that it is possible to improve lifestyle through educational events aimed at making students aware of the health risks deriving from unhealthy lifestyles.