Abstract
This study evaluates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on university students’ health outcomes and health behaviors through a systematic literature review of English and Spanish publications dated between March 2020 and November 2021. Synthesizing the findings from research identified using multiple databases and analyzed following PRISMA guidelines, the review establishes that mental health was the predominant area of focus during the early phase of the pandemic, representing 72% of all health outcomes studied. In addition, 22% of outcomes were related to health behaviors and 6% to physical health. Tools used to measure these outcomes varied in their validity: 79% of studies relied on validated measurement instruments to assess anxiety (94%) and depression (82%), while 21% employed non-validated tools, mostly to measure constructs such as worry and lifestyle changes. These trends highlight a strong emphasis on capturing prevalence and severity of mental health concerns among university students during a critical period of uncertainty. Moving forward, it is essential that researchers and practitioners employe a coordinate, global approach that measures university student health in a more holistic and standardized approach in future public health crises. Specifically, using validated measurement tools to assess health outcomes – including physical health, mental health, and health behaviors – while also considering related risk factors, provides more comprehensive surveillance data that allows for quicker and more targeted interventions and policies for the next major public health crisis.
Author ORCID Identifier
0000-0001-9168-5145
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Recommended Citation
Yudkin, Joshua S.; Brownell, Mckenna; Smith, Matthew Lee; and Jungbauer, Rebecca (2026) "Health Behaviors and Wellbeing of University Students During the Early COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review," Health Behavior Research: Vol. 9: No. 1.
