Symptoms of Anxiety in College Students and the Influence of Social Determinants of Health

ABSTRACT

Approximately 62.9% of college students felt “overwhelming anxiety” in the past year, even when a diagnosis was not present. Understanding social factors that can contribute to anxiety will better inform treatment, prevention, and interventions. The current study investigated the relationship between symptoms of anxiety and unmet social determinants of health needs (SDOH) in college students (N= 219). Results from a binary logistic regression analysis indicated that the largest predictors of symptoms of anxiety related to SDOH were hazardous housing, food insecurity, and no social support. Therapeutically addressing unmet SDOH needs includes universal assessment, consulting, and collaborating to address and manage needs, and recognizing that the presentation of anxiety can also include social health factors. Implications for college mental health practitioners are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Social determinants of health
• anxiety
• college students
• counseling
• binary logistic regression