Developing an Instrument to Identify Depression in College Freshmen
Level of Education of Students Involved
Undergraduate
Faculty Sponsor
Dr. Brandy, Dr. Kessler, Professor Gass
College
Nursing
Discipline(s)
Nursing
Presentation Type
Poster Presentation
Symposium Date
Spring 4-27-2023
Abstract
Freshman college students are encountering a major life transition that can impact their mental state in a positive, but also negative way. Currently, there are no instruments to identify depression in college freshmen. Our goal is to create an instrument that is able to identify depression in this target population. Through qualitative research based on previous experiences of college freshman, we have been able to create a list of items that portray the unique experiences of depression. Through the recruitment of students, focus sessions, and interviews, we have revised our list of items to create an instrument for our target population. Creating our instrument has allowed us to compare it to the standard screening tool, Centers for the Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CESD) to ensure the accuracy of our tool.
Recommended Citation
Arroyo, Marypaz; Niego, Estelle; Barbosa, Julianna; Krueger, Hannah; and Lipp, Natalie, "Developing an Instrument to Identify Depression in College Freshmen" (2023). Symposium on Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE). 1187.
https://scholar.valpo.edu/cus/1187
Biographical Information about Author(s)
We are undergraduate Nursing students working on a research team with faculty to develop an instrument that can be used to screen for depression in college freshmen. Together we have gained interest in hopefully providing other students insight to the importance of screening for depression with our tool.