(PS12-57) Walking, Driving, or Zooming: Predictors and Impacts of First-year Residency

The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increased awareness of remote-learning options for college students. Students in the pandemic experienced adverse psychological outcomes (Horita et al., 2021; Prokes & Housel, 2021), including depression and suicidal thoughts (Wathelet et al., 2020).  However, what remains unclear is the relationship of these presentations with the choice to engage in remote learning rather than traditional on-campus residence, and what the impact of that residency choice was on later socioemotional and academic outcomes.

This poster will present data from two related studies examining the impacts of on-campus residency, remote-learning, and commuting on first-semester socioemotional and academic functioning of students during the COVID-19 pandemic. All participants in these studies were first-year students at a small liberal arts college.

In study 1 (n=350), we examined the impact of pre-existing risk factors on the choice to live remotely (n=271), commute (n=35), or live on campus (n=42), and the impact of those risk factors on first-semester GPA. There were no differences overall (at p< .05) between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), discrimination, depression, anxiety, and trauma symptoms on the choice of residence. ACEs were negatively associated with end of first-semester GPA (r(348) = -.14, p < 0.01). However, discrimination, depression, anxiety, and trauma were not significantly correlated with GPA (p > 0.05). Additionally, campus residency did not adversely impact fall GPA (p >.05). Thus, pre-existing risk factors did not appear to influence residency choice, and residency choice was unrelated to GPA.

Study 2 (n=246) examined if the experience first-semester college remotely (40), living on campus (184) or commuting (n=23) increased COVID-19 related distress in Nov. 2020. The remote students in our study were more anxious and depressed (F(2, 246)=5.66, p < 0.01, η²=.044), and did more health-related reassurance-seeking (F(2, 246) = 5.19, p < .01, η²=.041) than their residential peers, suggesting the pandemic negatively impacted remote students in particular. Residential status again did not predict overall achievement, and GPA was instead predicted by numerous emotional symptoms. Overall, this suggests that the long-term effects of being remote in the pandemic prove to be more social and emotional than academic. These outcomes show the importance of improved emotional support for students, regardless of ability to be on campus.

Overall, these studies together suggest while students were not choosing to be remote due to pre-existing risk, the choice of being remote for the first semester at college had significant social and emotional impacts. As remote learning becomes increasingly common, this lends support for targeted interventions for advancing both the behavioral health and community resilience of remote students.