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The long-term mental health of Australia’s tertiary students

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Abstract

Purpose

The objective of the current study was to quantify the extent to which Australia’s tertiary students have reported poorer mental health in comparison with the general community between 2001 and 2017.

Methods

Data were derived from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey, a longitudinal household-based panel study. There were 29,124 participants who provided at least one observation over the study period. On average, participants provided 7.4 observations. Mental Health was assessed with the SF-36 mental health and vitality subscales.

Results

There was little evidence for differences in mental health and vitality between those studying at tertiary levels and those not in tertiary education. Age-stratified analyses revealed that any differences were reported by older students. Interactions between education level and time revealed that the association between tertiary study and mental health outcomes has been consistent over time.

Conclusion

There were very few differences between those in and those not in tertiary education. The magnitude of any differences was very small and does not necessarily reflect substantial poor mental health outcome. Overall, the most consistent finding was that there was little risk for poor mental health outcomes attributed to tertiary study.

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Acknowledgements

The research in this paper uses unit record data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. HILDA is funded by the Australian Government Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) and managed by the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research (Melbourne Institute). The findings and view reported in this paper are those of the authors.

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  1. Centre for Research on Ageing, Health and Wellbeing, Research School of Population Health, The Australian National University, Building 54, Mills Road, Canberra, ACT, Australia

    Richard A. Burns

  2. Centre for Applied Psychology, Faculty of Health, University of Canberra, Canberra, Australia

    Dimity A. Crisp

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Correspondence to Richard A. Burns.

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On behalf of all authors, Richard A. Burns states that there is no conflict of interest.

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Burns, R.A., Crisp, D.A. The long-term mental health of Australia’s tertiary students. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 55, 1223–1230 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-019-01806-7

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