Léo Ramos Chaves / Pesquisa FAPESP One in Four of the 748 interviewees showed signs of serious anxiety or moderate depressionLéo Ramos Chaves / Pesquisa FAPESP
A survey of 748 students from nine public universities in Brazil recorded a high prevalence of depression (51%) and anxiety (42.5%), according to a study led by the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). Because the online questionnaires that supported the conclusions were answered during the COVID-19 pandemic between August and November of 2022, the difficulties of adapting to online classes in previous semesters may have accentuated these psychological disorders. The survey was answered by students from public universities in Santa Maria (Rio Grande do Sul), Florianópolis (Santa Catarina), Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro), Montes Claros (Minas Gerais), Brasília (Federal District), Natal (Rio Grande do Norte), Castanhal (Pará), São Cristóvão (Sergipe), and Fortaleza (Ceará). The majority were Black or mixed-race women with a household income of less than two minimum wages. In 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) found that 35% of a sample of 13,984 university students from eight countries (Australia, Belgium, Germany, Mexico, Northern Ireland, South Africa, Spain, and the USA) showed at least one of the symptoms of depression, anxiety, or panic disorder due to financial problems and the challenges of academic life (Public Health Journal, February).
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