Understanding the mental health of doctoral researchers: a mixed methods systematic review with meta-analysis and meta-s
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RESEARCH
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Understanding the mental health of doctoral researchers: a mixed methods systematic review with meta-analysis and meta-synthesis Cassie M. Hazell1 , Laura Chapman2, Sophie F. Valeix3, Paul Roberts4, Jeremy E. Niven5 and Clio Berry6*
Abstract Background: Data from studies with undergraduate and postgraduate taught students suggest that they are at an increased risk of having mental health problems, compared to the general population. By contrast, the literature on doctoral researchers (DRs) is far more disparate and unclear. There is a need to bring together current findings and identify what questions still need to be answered. Methods: We conducted a mixed methods systematic review to summarise the research on doctoral researchers’ (DRs) mental health. Our search revealed 52 articles that were included in this review. Results: The results of our meta-analysis found that DRs reported significantly higher stress levels compared with population norm data. Using meta-analyses and meta-synthesis techniques, we found the risk factors with the strongest evidence base were isolation and identifying as female. Social support, viewing the PhD as a process, a positive student-supervisor relationship and engaging in self-care were the most well-established protective factors. Conclusions: We have identified a critical need for researchers to better coordinate data collection to aid future reviews and allow for clinically meaningful conclusions to be drawn. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO registration CRD42018092867 Keywords: Mental health, PhD students, doctoral researchers, Postgraduate researchers, Systematic review
Background Student mental health has become a regular feature across media outlets in the United Kingdom (UK), with frequent warnings in the media that the sector is facing a ‘mental health crisis’ [1]. These claims are largely based on the work of regulatory authorities and ‘grey’ literature. Such sources corroborate an increase in the prevalence of mental health difficulties amongst students. In 2013, 1 in 5 students reported having a mental health * Correspondence: [email protected] 6 Primary Care and Public Health, Brighton and Sussex Medical School and School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9PH, UK Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
problem [2]. Only 3 years later, however, this figure increased to 1 in 4 [3]. In real terms, this equates to 21, 435 students disclosing mental health problems in 2013 rising to 49,265 in 2017 [4]. Data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) demonstrates a 210% increase in the number of students terminating their studies reportedly due to poor mental health [5], while the number of students dying by suicide has consistently increased in the past decade [6]. This issue is not isolated to the UK. In the United States (US), the prevalence of student mental health problems and use of counselling services has steadily risen over the past 6 years [7]. A large international
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