The effects of university psychological counseling on students’ mental health in the COVID- 19 pandemic era

Abstract With the onset of the COVID- 19 pandemic era, university students have been confronted with heightened mental health challenges. In response, educational institutions have attempted to support students by offering online counseling services, aimed to promote their well-being. The present study examines the extent to which a psychological counseling intervention conducted during the COVID- 19 pandemic is associated with significant variations of self-reported psychological well-being, emotion regulation, and self-efficacy among undergraduate students at the University of Bari. An online survey assessing general health state, emotion regulation, and perceived self-efficacy was administered to 86 university students (70% female) who sought access to the Counseling service, before (T0) and after (T1) a psychological counseling intervention consisting in 5 sessions lasting 50 min each. The findings showed a significant increase in levels of well-being and self-efficacy as well as an increased resort to functional emotion regulation strategies. These results underscore the crucial role played by university psychological counseling services in addressing the psychological distress experienced by students.