35th Annual Student Research Conference
Wellness Trends among College Freshman
Abbigail E. Sauer* and Linh N. Nguyen
Dr. Nancy Daley-Moore and Dr. Julene Ensign, Faculty Mentors
Wellness has been an increasingly pertinent topic on college campuses. This study examined wellness trends among college freshmen by asking the following question: what practices, factors, and resources do students perceive to inhibit or enhance levels of wellness? Two focus groups (n = 7) were recruited from a pool of 290 survey participants, comprised of incoming freshmen attending a small midwestern university. Using deductive coding methods, preliminary findings showed that (a) overall wellness can improve or decline based on the quality of one’s support system and (b) the quality of their social networking skills can foster new connections to help create a sense of belonging on campus, and, finally, (c) the ability to initiate and maintain healthy habits, like physical activity, socializing with friends or journaling, can impact wellness. Ultimately, campus resources need to focus on creating healthy wellness habits that encourage positive support systems, especially among matriculating students.
Keywords: wellness, college students, qualitative, health
Topic(s):Health Science
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Session: 1-3
Location: SUB Activities Room
Time: 3:00