International Students' Mental Health Amidst COVID-19-A Systematic Review Based on Current Evidence

ABSTRACT

While the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been widely discussed during the past two years, little attention has been given to international students. This study aimed to systematically review all the empirical studies regarding international students' mental health amidst COVID-19. A search of the peer-reviewed papers was conducted using PsycINFO, Google Scholar, ProQuest Psychology, PubMed, Web of Science and ProQuest Public Health on 5 January 2022. Articles were selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria created. Eighteen studies were finally included in this review. Findings showed that international students experienced various adverse psychological outcomes during COVID-19. Protective and risk factors that have been found to correlate with international students' mental health were reviewed. Four possible avenues for future research, based on the current literature are identified and discussed.