Journal of American College Health

Journal of American College Health

Published by Taylor & Francis

Online ISSN: 1940-3208

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Print ISSN: 0744-8481

Journal websiteAuthor guidelines

Top-read articles

143 reads in the past 30 days

Figure 1. Simple slopes of total screen time and insomnia moderated by loneliness. Note: mean centered values of social screen time at −1 SD is −3.2 (low total screen time) and +1 SD is +3.2 (high total screen time).
Figure 2. Simple slopes of social screen time and insomnia moderated by loneliness.
Figure 3. graph representing total screen time hours and likelihood for insomnia.
Figure 4. graph representing average social screen time hours and likelihood for insomnia.
Figure 5. graph representing average nonsocial screen time hours and likelihood for insomnia.

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Screen time and insomnia among college students: the moderating effect of loneliness

November 2024

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548 Reads

John Richmond T Sy

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Ruth K Brombach

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The transactional theory of stress and coping as a stress management model for students in Hispanic-serving universities

February 2025

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123 Reads

Introduction: Stress is especially profound among minority college students who experience magnified levels of prejudice and discrimination. High levels of stress significantly impact their academic performance, and health. Objective: The present study aimed to examine the constructs of Lazarus and Folkman's transactional theory of stress and coping for stress management in college students from a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Methods: One hundred fifty undergraduate students completed the survey. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to measure the incremental variance accounted for by each predictor set. Results: The final regression model accounted for 56% of the variance in perceived stress scores, a large effect size. In the final model, significant contributors to perceived stress variance were emotion-oriented coping, core self-evaluations, and social support. Implication: These findings can inform the development of effective psychosocial interventions to support minority college students develop personal strengths and social support, buffering against the negative effects during a college mental health crisis.

Aims and scope


Publishes research on health in higher education institutions, focusing on preventive medicine, community health, mental health, pharmacy and sports medicine.

  • The Journal of American College Health is a subscription-based, peer-reviewed journal that provides information related to health and well-being in institutions of higher education in the United States. The journal publishes articles encompassing many areas of this broad field, including clinical and preventive medicine, environmental and community health and safety, health promotion and education, management and administration, mental health, nursing, pharmacy, and sports medicine...

For a full list of the subject areas this journal covers, please visit the journal website.

Recent articles


Improving health insurance literacy for Nigerian students in the US: Evaluation of a training
  • Article

April 2025

Prudence T Mbah

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Evan K Perrault











Do adolescent experiences help shape college students’ physical activity beliefs and behaviors? A mixed methods study

April 2025

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6 Reads

Objective: This study examined college students’ current physical activity (PA) beliefs and behaviors, as well as the perceived influence of their adolescent experiences on their current PA habits. Participants: 156 college students (M age = 19.88 years, Male n = 27, Female n = 128) attending a mid-sized midwestern public university. Methods: Students reported on current PA behaviors/beliefs and recollections of adolescent experiences (age 12-18) through surveys (n = 156) and focus groups (n = 17). Linear regression analyses examined whether adolescent experiences (parent support, friend support, physical education experiences, community support) and current perceptions (enjoyment, self-efficacy, and friend support) were associated with current PA. Thematic analyses qualitatively explored participants’ perceptions. Results: Quantitative results revealed only current enjoyment, self-efficacy, and friend support were significantly associated with current PA (R2=0.34, p < 0.001). However, qualitative analysis revealed lasting influences of adolescent experiences, particularly social experiences with friends, parental support, and community resources. Conclusions: Findings indicate that while college students’ physical activity is more strongly influenced by current self-efficacy, enjoyment, and friend support, positive adolescent experiences may indirectly shape ongoing attitudes and perceptions toward physical activity. Keywords: Adolescence, college students, enjoyment,friend support, physical activity, transition







Evaluation of curricular mindfulness micro-interventions to support college student resilience: a pilot study
  • Article
  • Full-text available

March 2025

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11 Reads


A pilot study examining bicultural stress, internalizing problems, alcohol use, and familism's moderating role in Hispanic/Latinx college students View supplementary material A pilot study examining bicultural stress, internalizing problems, alcohol use, and familism's moderating role in Hispanic/Latinx college students

March 2025

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13 Reads

Objective: this study examined how bicultural stress affects depressive, anxiety, and alcohol use disorder (aUD) symptoms in first-year hispanic/latinx college students, and whether familism moderates these effects. Method: Using the data from the Pathways to college health study, 264 self-identifying hispanic/latinx first-year students (74.9% woman) at a large public hispanic-serving university in the southwest completed online surveys in 2020 or 2021. Results: Results from hierarchical multiple regression models showed that higher levels of bicultural stress were associated with more depressive and anxiety symptoms but not associated with aUD symptoms. Familism was not associated with depressive, anxiety, or aUD symptoms and did not moderate the associations between bicultural stress and these outcomes. Discussion: these findings highlight the impact of bicultural stress on mental health outcomes and suggest familism may not play a substantial role in hispanic/latinx college students internalizing and aUD symptoms.





Examining the impact of forgiveness on suicidality among college student problematic drinkers: The mediating role of depression, hopelessness, and psychache

March 2025

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9 Reads

Objective: To explore how forgiveness relates to psychological distress and suicidality among college student problematic drinkers. Participants: 383 college students (ages 18 to 25). Methods: Participants provided demographic information and completed self-report questionnaires. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics, including Hayes PROCESS macro for testing indirect effects. Results: Psychache, but not depression or hopelessness, significantly played an indirect role in the relationship between forgiveness and suicidality. Higher levels of each of forgiveness of self and of uncontrollable situations were associated with lower levels of psychache and in turn lower levels of suicidality. Conversely, forgiveness of others was linked to higher levels of psychache and suicidality. Conclusions: These results underscore the complexity of the relationship between forgiveness, psychological distress, and suicidality, emphasizing the importance of targeted interventions. Further research is needed to investigate the underlying mechanisms driving the adverse effects of forgiveness of others.


Perceptions of meat and dairy foods among college students at a land-grant institution: an observational, analytical study

March 2025

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4 Reads

Objective: To better understand college students’ perceptions of animal product consumption, this study’s purpose was to examine associations between student characteristics and attitudes toward red meat, dairy consumption, and plant-based alternatives. Participants: The participants were a stratified random sample of 5,300 students from Kansas State University, with 528 fully completed surveys, representing a 10% completion rate. Methods: A 25-item survey assessed demographics and perceptions, with data dimensionality reduced using principal component analysis (PCA), revealing five factors. Linear regressions identified associations between student characteristics and attitudes. Results: Most respondents were female (67%), aged 18–25 years (89%), white (87%), late undergraduates (53%), and omnivorous (92%). College affiliation (p < .01) and self-reported dietary eating patterns (p < .05) were consistently associated with perceptions of red meat and dairy. Race/ethnicity (p < .01), agricultural knowledge (p < .05), and population size (p < .01) also showed significant associations with specific perceptions of red meat and dairy. Conclusions: Students affiliated with the College of Agriculture and those with omnivorous diets had more positive views on red meat and dairy compared to others. Despite trends toward plant-based diets, students at this land-grant institution generally viewed red meat and dairy positively.


Perceptions of mental health and academics among students in a College-Focused Rapid Rehousing program: a qualitative study

March 2025

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1 Read

Objective: This study explores student perceptions of their academics and mental health during their participation in the College-Focused Rapid Rehousing (CFRRH) program. Participants: Nineteen students at two universities in California from diverse backgrounds participated in the study. Methods: In-depth interviews were analyzed using a constructivist grounded theory approach. Results: Findings centered around three themes: (1) Students in CFRRH have backgrounds characterized by precarity; (2) Mental health recovery once stably housed is a complex process; and (3) Stable housing helps students focus on academics. Conclusions: The results provide insight into the types of nuanced experiences students face before and after they received assistance from CFRRH.


When state rescuing systems were paralyzed: Post-hurricane depression, hope, and spirituality of Black and White student volunteers

March 2025

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3 Reads

Objectives: Major disasters impose existential challenges and researchers have called for investigation of protectors (e.g., hope, spirituality) and further examination of mental health among Black and White student volunteers. This longitudinal study validated spirituality measures and tested a hypothetical model of depression among volunteers after deadly hurricanes. Participants: Two-wave, survey data were collected via a purposive sample at three- and six-months post-disaster (N = 201; Age = 30.38, female = 91%, Black students = 38.8%). Methods: Bayesian structural equation modeling (Bayesian-SEM) was employed to address both the small Wave-2 sample and the dichotomized depression measure. Results: High proportions of respondents met symptom bars approaching clinical depression in both waves. As expected, hope had a suppressing effect on Waves 1-&-2 depression and mediated the opposite roles of peritraumatic emotions on both. Prayer coping mediated positive paths from Black participants. Conclusion: Bayesian-SEM results reinforced the lasting protection of hope against post-disaster depression and indicated greater reliance on spirituality to cope among Black student volunteers.


Journal metrics


1.6 (2023)

Journal Impact Factor™


30%

Acceptance rate


5.4 (2023)

CiteScore™


70 days

Submission to first decision


21 days

Acceptance to publication


0.973 (2023)

SNIP


0.726 (2023)

SJR

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