Impacts of COVID-19 lockdowns on university students’ lifestyles: do age and gender matter?

Figures & data

Table 1. Structure of respondents.

Gender	Male			Female		Total
	101 (26.5%)			280 (73.5%)		381 (100%)
Age group	18-22 years	23-29 years	30-39 years	40-49 years	Over 49 years	Total
	98 (25.7%)	184 (48.3%)	38 (10%)	53 (13.9%)	8 (2.1%)	381 (100%)
Form of study	Full-time			Distance		Total
	245 (64.3%)			136 (35.7%)		381 (100%)
Study programme	Bachelors degree			Master’s degree		Total
	142 (37.3%)			239 (62.7%)		381 (100%)
Occupation while studying	Yes			No		Total
	333 (87.4%)			48 (12.6%)		381 (100%)

Table 2. University students’ lifestyles during COVID-19 lockdowns in relative terms.

Characteristics related to the university students’ lifestyles	Yes	No
I followed a healthy lifestyle.	70.9	29.1
I played sports regularly.	55.9	44.1
I increased my appetite.	34.6	65.4
I increased my alcohol consumption.	14.7	85.3
I spent more time on social media.	56.2	43.8
I spent more time watching movies, series etc.	51.7	48.3
I spent more time playing computer games.	13.4	86.6
I gained weight.	33.6	66.4
I lost weight.	24.7	75.3
I felt physically exhausted.	25.2	74.8
I felt mentally exhausted.	46.5	53.5
I felt lonely.	37	63
I suffered from depression.	18.9	81.1
I had sleep problems.	20.2	79.8

Table 3. Distance learning difficulties during COVID-19 lockdowns in relative terms.

Distance learning difficulties	Yes	No
Insufficient technical equipment	10.8	89.2
Insufficient work facilities	8.9	91.1
Insufficient IT skills	6.8	93.2
Lack of learning materials	13.4	86.6
Lots of different online tools/apps in use	32.5	67.5
Insufficient feedback from teachers	28.6	71.4
Lack of motivation to study	27.6	72.4
Lack of family support	6.6	93.4
A high workload at a job	22.3	77.7
Educating family members (children, siblings)	9	94

Table 4. Pearson’s chi-square test of independence.

Variables
No	Characteristics related to the university students’ lifestyle	Age	Gender
H01-H02	I followed a healthy lifestyle.	0.704	0.382
H03-H04	I played sports regularly.	0.028	0.553
	Cramer’s V	0.155 low	–
H05-H06	I increased my appetite.	0.200	0.465
H07-H08	I increased my alcohol consumption.	0.661	0.960
H09-H010	I spent more time on social media.	< 0.001	0.686
	Cramer’s V	0.245 moderate	–
H011-H012	I spent more time watching movies, series etc.	< 0.001	0.093
	Cramer’s V	0.246 moderate	–
H013-H014	I spent more time playing computer games.	0.004	<0.001
	Cramer’s V	0.187 low	0.270 moderate
H015-H016	I gained weight.	0.220	0.793
H017-H018	I lost weight.	0.001	0.771
	Cramer’s V	0.210 low	–
H019-H020	I felt physically exhausted.	0.912	0.085
H021-H022	I felt mentally exhausted.	0.642	0.361
H023-H024	I felt lonely.	< 0.001	0.417
	Cramer’s V	0.222 low	–
H025-H026	I suffered from depression.	0.001	0.787
	Cramer’s V	0.210 low	–
H027-H028	I had sleep problems.	0,089	0.106

Data availability statement

The data supporting this research’s findings are available from the corresponding author upon request.