Abstract
Health status and health behavior change during the transition from school to university. However, it is still unclear whether these changes occur at specific points in time, and whether these changes are stable. Therefore, our aim was to conduct a pilot test on biographical mapping (BM) for the first time in this research area in order to map the trajectories of the health status of university students over time. This enabled us to also test the practicability of BM, and to assess the agreement of the findings of BM with those of a standardized questionnaire. We included 30 fourth-year university students. First, they filled in a standardized questionnaire on their sociodemographic information, current health status, and health status compared with that for their final year of school. Second, they filled in a BM grid that allows for drawing the changes in health status that have taken place over the transition period. The health status changed during the transition (e.g., slight decline in general subjective health), and was related to specific events before and after the transition (e.g., examinations), showing that all health variables were not stable over time. The findings of BM were also reflected in the standardized questionnaire. Using BM revealed the changes in health during a six-year-period, including the school–university transition. The identified changes in health during transition and at specific time points underline that not only assistance before the transition, but also psychological support during studies, seems to be important for the health promotion of students. Besides this, BM seems to be a useful, although time-consuming, instrument for which the results were similar to those in the questionnaire.
Highlights
The transition from school to university is a crucial phase for many young people worldwide
We found changes in the health status that were related to the transition itself, but could see that the health variables were associated with specific events during the course of their studies, such as examinations
The mapping grid allowed them to think about the development over time, which might have made it easier for them to recall their health status at a specific point in time. It is a reduction of knowledge, the assessment of health across validated health status scales and the question of current health status compared with an earlier point in time seems to reflect the respective numbers of the mapping well
Summary
The transition from school to university is a crucial phase for many young people worldwide. University students become more independent from their parents, their autonomy increases, and they face new sets of responsibilities [3,4,5,6]. Their relationship with their family members may change, and new relationships will develop as many students change their domicile at the start of their studies [7,8]. Previous research shows that the transition to the university level is associated with significant changes in health-related risk behaviors. In Germany, where the current study took place, a nationwide survey identified changes in eating behavior and physical activity among university students compared with their previous habits during their last years at school [7,15]
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