Comparing College Students’ Capacities for Resiliency Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Using data from the 2018 (n = 54,601) and 2021 (n = 35,283) Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership survey, this study compared measures of college students’ resilience before and one year into the COVID-19 pandemic among both the entire undergraduate student samples and among demographic groups (i.e., gender, race, sexual orientation, disability, and first-generation status). Findings revealed a statistically significant decrease in reported resilience from 2018 to 2021 and consistent significant decreases across nearly every demographic group. Results highlight the importance of individual and environmental factors when attending to influences on college students’ resilience.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

¹ Color is capitalized in the phrase students of Color to acknowledge the systemic barrier of racism and the role of language in acknowledging and working to dismantle racism and white supremacy in education settings. Likewise, white is lowercased to draw attention to the construct of race and our collective role in dismantling racism in education settings. For consistency in table data, all demographic categories are capitalized.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ben Correia-Harker

a

Ben Correia-Harker (he/him, [email protected]) is clinical assistant professor in the Department of Educational Policy and Leadership at Marquette University and co-principal investigator of the Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership (MSL).

Krista Soria

b

Krista Soria (she/her, [email protected]) is assistant professor in leadership and counseling at the University of Idaho. She investigates programmatic practices to prepare students to engage in the complexities of social change.

Matthew Johnson

c

Matthew Johnson (he/him, [email protected]) is professor of higher education at Central Michigan University. His research focuses on the intersections of leadership, democratic engagement, and social justice.

Jaime Joyce VanEnkevort

d

Jaime Joyce VanEnkevort (any, [email protected]) is an instructor in the School of Education at Northern Michigan University. Their research examines justice, equity, and educational outcomes in rural PK12 and teacher education.

John P. Dugan

e

John P. Dugan (he/him, [email protected]) serves as co-founder and chief research and development officer for the Center for Expanding Leadership & Opportunity (CELO) and is the principal investigator for the Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership (MSL).