Abstract
The general purpose of this study was to examine counseling services as a correlate of institutional commitment and related variables over time on a sample of non-urgent undergraduates. Data for non-urgent clients at a University Counseling Center (UCC) were collected using on-line surveys over four time-periods. Within-time correlations generally showed that mental health concerns was negatively related to institutional commitment, while counseling help belief was positively related. Institutional commitment is defined as a student feeling that he or she selected the right institution to attend Using a smaller sample, i.e., n = 15, of complete-data clients matched-over-time, overall level of mental health concerns significantly declined, while institutional commitment significantly increased. Counseling help belief decreased from Time 1 to Time 2 but then increased over time. Scientifically demonstrating to higher-level University administration that counseling over time can positively influence undergraduates’ institutional commitment can help the UCC to increase its allocation of university-based resources to keep pace with non-urgent client demands.
Highlights
The 2016 annual report by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH, 2017), which collected data across 139 University Counseling Centers (UCCs), noted a continuing increase in the demand for mental health services
Sample participants reporting anxiety and depression as the two main mental health issues for coming to the UCC was consistent with the AUCCD (2016) and CCMH (2017) reports
To the authors’ knowledge, the research design of this study is rare in finding significant correlations among study variables across four time periods for a non-urgent sample of students receiving counseling services; as well as significant changes, with large effect sizes (Cohen, 1988), in two of four variables for the complete counseling sample
Summary
The 2016 annual report by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH, 2017), which collected data across 139 University Counseling Centers (UCCs), noted a continuing increase in the demand for mental health services. The report goes onto say that: This shift, especially in centers with funding models that don’t increase with demand, may impact the availability of routine services after the initial contact. The general purpose of this study was to examine counseling services as a correlate of institutional commitment and related variables over time on a sample of non-urgent undergraduates. This is an important issue to consider as UCCs compete for university resources with other campus stakeholders (Hunt, Watkins, & Eisenberg, 2012)
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