Prevalence and correlates of mental health symptoms and disorders among US international college students

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed the prevalence and correlates of mental health (MH) symptoms and diagnoses in international college students in the United States. Participants: The sample included 44,851 degree-seeking undergraduate students (42,428 domestic students and 2,423 international students). Methods: Logistic regression analyses were conducted using international student status to predict MH symptoms and diagnoses from the Spring 2017 administration of the ACHA-National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA). Results: International students were less likely than domestic students to report a diagnosis of anxiety, comorbid depression and anxiety, or other psychiatric diagnoses. International students were more likely to report suicide attempts and feeling overwhelmingly depressed. Conclusions: Among international students studying in the US, lower rates of MH diagnoses despite higher rates of depressive symptoms and suicide attempts mirror similar trends seen in American-born minority students. University campuses should consider culturally sensitive and targeted psychoeducation, mental health services, and outreach programming.

Keywords:

• International college students
• mental health
• suicidal ideation
• suicide attempt
• universities

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the ACHA for providing and approving the use of this dataset: ACHA-National College Health Assessment, Spring 2017. Hanover, MD: ACHA [producer and distributor]; (2017-04-17 of distribution). The opinions, findings, and conclusions presented/reported in this article/presentation are those of the author(s), and are in no way meant to represent the corporate opinions, views, or policies of the ACHA. The ACHA does not warrant nor assume any liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information presented in this article/presentation.

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States of America and was deemed exempt from review by the Partners HealthCare Human Research Committee/Institutional Review Board, Boston, MA.

Additional information

Funding

Support for preparing this manuscript was provided through the Mary A. Tynan Faculty Fellowship and an NIMH K23 MH 107714-01 A1 award (to C.H.L.), a Willamette University Atkinson Research Award (to C.S.), and an NIMH T32 MH 16259-39 award (to. S.H.).