The Psychological Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic in Remote Learning in Higher Education

Bibliographic Data

ID22044559
AuthorsLívea Dornela Godoy (0000-0003-4667-3553, Universidade de São Paulo), Raquel Falcoski (Universidade de São Paulo), Raquel Messi Falcoski (0009-0004-4115-656X, Universidade de São Paulo), Roberta Monteiro Incrocci (0000-0002-5257-5493, Universidade de São Paulo), Fabiana Maris Versuti (0000-0002-3504-4842, Universidade de São Paulo), Fernando E Padovan‐Neto (0000-0002-5529-3168, Universidade de São Paulo, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume11
Issue9
Pages473
Publication date2021-08-27
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEducation Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/educsci11090473
OpenAlexW3197620693
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited35

Stressful events can cause a significant impact on education; however, it is not yet clear how the interplay between anxiety, work, and social dysfunction relates to learning impairments. In this study, we investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on students’ learning and mental health. This study was conducted during four modules of a remote Psychopharmacology course between 5 October and 20 December 2020. We collected data from 28 Psychology undergraduate students at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. We used pre- and post-test multiple-choice questions to obtain a quantitative measure of learning. Students completed an online survey to report demographic information, functional impairment (Work and Social Adjustment scale; WSAS), generalized anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale; GAD-7), coronavirus anxiety (Brazilian adapted version of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale; CAS-BR), and self-perception with the remote lectures’ methodology. In our sample, 42.9% of respondents experienced symptoms of generalized anxiety disorders (GAD-7 ≥ 15), and 53.6% had moderate to severe functional impairment (WSAS > 20). We also observed an overlapping profile of highly anxious and dysfunctional students. A chi-square test of independence revealed a relation between pairs of multiple-choice questions answers and GAD-7 scores, indicating that less anxious students were more likely to perform better in pairs of pre- and post-tests. Intriguingly, the correlational analysis suggested that students with moderate to severe functional impairment (WSAS scores > 20) were less likely to change from an incorrect to a correct answer to pairs of pre- and post-tests. This data suggests that psychological distress and anxiety states might influence students’ ability to coordinate social and work activities and performance during remote learning. Although this study evaluated a small sample of students, our data highlights the importance of investigating anxiety and functional impairment measures as part of the remote-learning curriculum

Anxiety · Disease · Dysfunctional family · Generalized anxiety disorder · Pandemic · Psychiatry · Test anxiety · Clinical Psychology · COVID-19 and Mental Health · Educational Innovations and Technology · Medicine · Perfectionism, Procrastination, Anxiety Studies · Psychology

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