Date of Award

Fall 9-5-2025

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Colleen Conley

Abstract

Poor mental health among first-year college students has been associated with a plethora of unfavorable outcomes including worsening mental health problems later in college as well as declines in academic performance, rates of college retention, and postgraduate employment and income potential. While demand for mental health services on college campuses is high, there are various barriers to accessing these services. Peer mentoring is a resource-efficient solution for curbing college student mental health and academic challenges; however, the effects of past mentoring programs are inconsistent. Additionally, technology-delivered interventions (TDIs) have been shown to yield positive outcomes for young adults along various psychological domains, however the research on the efficacy of technology-enhanced mentoring models to specifically aid college students’ functioning is nascent. The current quasi-experimental study enrolled 38 first-year college students in an intervention (n = 11) or comparison group (n = 27). Linear mixed models revealed that while there were no significant group differences in any of the psychological distress or academic outcomes between students who were and were not enrolled in the intervention, there was an effect of time such that students across both study groups exhibited higher levels of depressive symptoms at the end of the semester than at its start (though this effect did not hold when adjusted for lifetime treatment history for a psychological problem). Mediation analyses overall identified no significant mediating effects of the level of engagement with the intervention (number of completed Check-Ins and mentee messages sent) on the relationship between students’ mental health at the start of the fall semester and their academic outcomes by the end of the semester. Lastly, a thematic analysis of the text message interactions between mentors and mentees identified 13 content- and process-related themes revealing that mentors and mentees discussed topics related to the logistics of the mentoring program, social and emotional adjustment to college and related resources, goal setting, and academic and non-academic-related experiences and resources. Additionally, mentors and mentees were observed employing various strategies related to progress monitoring, providing social and emotional support, and communication. This research offers a stepped-care approach to offloading the burden of addressing college students’ mental health and academic challenges from college counseling center and academic advising staff to paraprofessional support through the supplementation of a technology tool.

Download

Share

COinS