Immediate effect of gratitude journal on mental well-being of college students in Kerala

Abstract

Background: COVID-19 has led to economic slowdown, loss of life, loss of livelihood, health complications, poor quality of life, deteriorated mental health, and poor education. One of the critical issues is decreased mental health among adolescents. Mental health was indeed a problem even before COVID-19, and the pandemic has substantially raised or catalyzed it to another level. Teachers reported that many college students who came to college after a long period of lockdown seem to be very confused, anxious, emotionally exhausted, and stressed. Parents are of the opinion that their children show irritation, anger, and frustrations at home. This study is an offshoot of this concern. Aim: This study aims to know the immediate effect of gratitude journals on mental well-being. Settings and Design: The study was conducted at the University Institute of Technology (UIT), Karuvatta, Alappuzha, Kerala. The experimental design was used for the study. Materials and Methods: One hundred and eight college students (F = 50 and M = 58) aged between 18 and 25 years from UIT, Alappuzha, Kerala, were selected randomly for this study. Students were divided equally into two groups, experimental group (n = 54) and control group (n = 54); both groups were tested to analyze mental well-being using Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale. Experimental group was made to fill the gratitude journal immediately after the pretest and the control group was allowed to do their daily routine. Posttest was conducted to find if there was any significant difference in the experimental group. Statistical Analysis Used: Paired sample “t”-test and ANCOVA were used for the statistical analysis. Results: It shows a significant difference at a 0.05 level. When the outcome was compared between experimental and control group, the experimental group showed an increase in their mental well-being score (P < 0.01), whereas the control group did not show any difference in mental well-being, (P = 0.540). Conclusions: This implies that a gratitude journal could be a good intervention even in short run to improve the mental well-being among college students and hence students can be better prepared for learning.