Abstract
COVID-19 caused unprecedented disruptions to regular university operations worldwide. Dealing with 100% virtual classrooms and suspension of essential in-person activities resulted in significant stress and anxiety for students coping with isolation, fear, and uncertainties in their academic careers. In this study, we applied a machine learning approach to identify distinct coping patterns between graduate and undergraduate students when facing these challenges. We based our study on a large proprietary dataset collected from 517 students in US professional institutions during an early peak of the pandemic. In particular, we cast our problem under the association rule mining (ARM) framework by introducing a new method to transform survey data into market basket items and customer transactions in which students’ behavioral patterns were analogous to customer purchase patterns. Our experimental results suggested that graduate and undergraduate students adopted different ways of coping that could be attributed to their different maturity levels and lifestyles. Our findings can further serve as a focus of attention (FOA) tool to facilitate customized advising or counseling to address the unique challenges associated with each group that may warrant differentiated interventions.
Highlights
On 30 January 2020, the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency, and on 11 March 2020, COVID-19 (“coronavirus disease 2019”) was characterized as a pandemic
Our study aims to fill this gap by introducing a new method to transform survey results to market basket items and, subsequently, apply association rule mining (ARM) to mine behavioral patterns among university students during an early peak in the pandemic
Our findings can further serve as a focus of attention (FOA) tool to facilitate customized advising or counseling to address the unique challenges associated with each group, which may require differentiated interventions
Summary
On 30 January 2020, the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency, and on 11 March 2020, COVID-19 (“coronavirus disease 2019”) was characterized as a pandemic. As the COVID-19 outbreak impacted all aspects of life globally [1] and social distancing policies were implemented to halt virus spread, university students faced unprecedented stressors [2–4] as a result of the pandemic [4,5]. An individual’s coping styles might affect how that person perceives stress. According to Lazarus and Folkman’s (1984) transactional model of stress and coping, personal and situational factors influence how one perceives and evaluates encountered situations. Variables within a person and in the environment (e.g., beliefs, demands, constraints) affect stress appraisal and coping strategy usage, resulting in physiological and emotional reactions [6]. Coping describes the cognitive and behavioral efforts used to manage the internal and external demands of a stressful situation [6,7]. Coping styles and strategies (i.e., confrontive, distancing, self-controlling, seeking social support, accepting responsibility, escape avoidance, planful problem solving, and positive reappraisal) affect
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
