Health Behaviors and Mental Health Among College Students
A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Behavioral and Mental Health".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 27 February 2026 | Viewed by 3313
Special Issue Editors
Interests: clinical psychology; psychoanalytic psychology; contaminated sites; psychotherapeutic interventions for college students; mental health in university students: Risk and protective factors; psychological effects of environmental and occupational asbestos exposure; affect regulation and mental functioning in patients with oncologic and psychosomatic diseases; psychotherapeutic interventions for cancer patients and their caregivers
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
In recent years, there has been increasing international interest in health behaviors, especially risk behaviors, i.e., behaviors that not only affect a person in the present, but whose effects are also felt in later periods. Risk behaviors and mental health appear to be particularly relevant in young adults, as they are associated with long-term psychophysical diseases and mortality. For example, research suggests a link between inappropriate dietary behaviors and mental and physical health, as well as between the use of various substances during college and morbidity, mortality and an increased risk of developing psychosis. Moreover, the transitional nature of this period, which coincides with the developmental tasks of emerging adulthood, may also imply that academic life is a stressful experience. Studies have emphasized that the academic student population is at higher risk of psychological distress when compared to the general population. College students appear to have high levels of mental health problems (i.e., high risk of suicide, anxiety and depression), which can lead to low physical activity and sleep problems, academic underachievement and dropout. Therefore, this Special Issue aims to examine mental health and wellbeing in relation to health risk behaviors and quality of academic life of college students. In addition, an explicit focus on the public health perspective and the effectiveness of interventions aimed at promoting health and wellbeing in university contexts using a multidisciplinary approach would also be welcome.
Dr. Isabella Giulia Franzoi
Dr. Gloria Guidetti
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- college students
- mental health
- health behaviors
- risk
- unhealthy behaviors
- intervention
- promotion
- prevention
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