Study: Race can play role in college depression

A new study found that race influences rates of anxiety and depression in college students, with minority, women and first generation students experiencing higher rates of depression than peers.

According to researchers, students not of the majority race at an institution experienced higher rates of depression than students of the majority. The research led by University of Georgia professor Dr. Janani Rajbhandari-thapa, an associate professor in the university’s College of Public Health, studied increasing anxiety and depression among students at predominately white and historically Black colleges and universities.

Rajbhandari-thapa and the study’s co-authors, who included Albany State University President Marion Fedrick, linked findings to the pandemic, citing how mental health worsened among college students, causing concern in both public health and academia, in an article in the Journal of American College Health.

Over 3,100 students from a predominately white university (The University of Georgia) and a historically Black university (Albany State University) participated in a voluntary survey during the pandemic. Researchers found traumatic events, decreased social interactions, illness and socioeconomic factors resulted in anxiety and depression.

“Our study emphasizes the importance of what college campuses do to address mental health, activities and social support for college students, to help them fit in and be at home in the college environment,” said Rajbhandari-thapa. The authors named factors that help: social support, self-efficacy and a sense of belonging.