A long-term Michigan State University (MSU) study found that most college students felt emotionally resilient after the COVID-19 pandemic, with improved psychological functioning, less loneliness, and greater satisfaction with life.
The authors of the study Published online in January in personality and individual differencestracked the same 248 university students from 2020 to 2021 while they were in school, and until 2025 after graduation. This study is one of the few longitudinal studies of college students during the pandemic.
Researchers found that by the time students graduated, they were seeing their friends more in person and interacting less online.
Research has found that students’ personalities are influencing how they recover from the pandemic. The extroverted students reported higher life satisfaction and less loneliness by the end of the study, while the more anxious students struggled more with loneliness. Surprisingly, many students now look back favorably on the early days of online learning, “even though they disliked it at the time,” study co-author William Chopik, Ph.D., associate professor of psychology at MSU, said in the paper. news release.
University closures are particularly difficult for university students.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been difficult for everyone, but the shutdown posed unique challenges for college students. Many adults who had just left home to live more independently had to return to their parents’ homes because campuses were closed. At a time when social relationships are crucial in life, college students have been isolated from their friends and forced to complete coursework online.
Many students found it difficult to engage with teachers and online subject matter. Students have felt lonely during lockdown, and some studies have found that this loneliness continues even after social restrictions are eased.
“This study provides a clearer understanding of how personality matters more in times of crisis, but less so when conditions stabilize,” co-author and undergraduate researcher Logan Gibson said in a news release. “It’s reassuring to know that people aren’t locked into bad outcomes solely because of their personality traits.”
