Mental Health Risk Profiles and Related Substance Use During Coronavirus Pandemic Among College Students Who Use Substances.

College students have shown elevated mental distress during the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19). The extent and persistence of mental distress as COVID-19 restrictions have continued is unclear. This study used latent profile analysis to identify student mental health risk subgroups and to evaluate subgroups in relation with substance use. A four-profile solution was supported with a sample of 930 college students (69.6% female, 58.1% White) from 11 US-based institutions. Students were characterized by slight mental health symptoms, mild mental health symptoms, moderate-to-severe mental health symptoms with mild psychosis/substance use, and severe mental health symptoms. The severe profile comprised more ethnoracial or sexual minorities and students impacted from COVID-19. Whereas the severe profile had more alcohol-related consequences, the slight profile had fewer cannabis-related consequences. COVID-19 has exacerbated college student risks for psychiatric disorders. Students of diverse backgrounds and more impacted by COVID-19 show disproportionately more mental distress and related substance use.

Is the Blood Donation Deferral Policy a Reflection of Anti-LGBTQ Institutional Bias? Community Perceptions Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

As part of its responsibilities to protect the safety of the American public, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates activities associated with blood donation. One FDA policy concerns the deferral period of blood donation by men who have sex with men (MSM), and their sexual partners. The policy risks reinforcing stigma against people in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning (LGBTQ) community. The 2019 novel coronavirus pandemic created an urgent need for blood products;hence, the FDA shortened the deferral period for MSM and their sexual partners. Yet, the public's support of the deferral policy remained unclear. U.S. community adults (N = 829, Mage = 46.83, 50.3% women, 9.5% lesbian, gay, bisexual (LGB) individuals) rated their approval of the FDA's deferral policy and attitudes toward blood donations from people across various sexual orientations and gender identities. Approximately 78% of participants reported positive attitudes toward receiving blood from heterosexual donors, whereas 54% reported positive attitudes toward receiving blood from LGBTQ donors. Participants were inclined to believe that the 2020 policy revision was motivated by an increased demand for blood donations amid the coronavirus pandemic rather than an intent to reduce discrimination. Relative to LGB participants, heterosexual participants were less willing to receive blood from LGBTQ donors, more likely to endorse the FDA's deferral policy, and less likely to consider this policy to be discriminatory. Grounded in a minority stress framework, understanding public opinion can contextualize the possible negative impact on LGBTQ health and inform future FDA policies. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research is the property of Psi Chi Journal of Undergraduate Research and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Short-Term Changes in Internalizing Symptoms and Help-Seeking Attitudes During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Introduction: Existing data suggest that American adults experience added emotional difficulties amid the coronavirus disease outbreak. Psychotherapy can help mitigate mental health concerns;still, many individuals with unmet mental health needs refrain from professional help-seeking. According to theory of reasoned action, negative help-seeking attitudes are key barriers to engagement with mental health services. Given that individuals with severe distress are more likely to seek therapy than individuals with mild psychopathology symptoms, greater initial and increasing levels of internalizing symptoms amid the coronavirus outbreak likely are linked to increasingly favorable attitudes toward professional help-seeking. Method: In the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, American community adults, N = 831 [49.0% Asian Americans], Mage = 46.78, 50.2% women, were recruited for a panel survey study conducted over the course of three weeks. At each time point, participants completed questionnaires to assess their internalizing symptoms associated with depression and anxiety as well as their openness to and perceived value/need in treatment seeking. Results: Very few participants-especially Asian Americans -were seeking counseling during the study period. Latent growth curve results showed a general decline in internalizing symptoms, and no changes in openness to and perceived need in professional help-seeking. Whereas there were no time-varying correlations between internalizing symptoms and help-seeking attitudes, individuals with greater baseline internalizing symptoms generally were more open to seeking professional help and perceived less value in mental health services. Sensitivity analyses showed patterns in the Asian American subsample similar to those in the overall sample. Discussion: Implications for research and clinical practice are discussed.