Stigma, Health, and Academic Performance in University Students with Physical and Mental Chronic Health Conditions: Baseline Data Report

While physical and mental chronic health conditions (CHCs) may be rising in university populations and are associated with diminished health and academic performance, less is known about how students with co-occurring mental and physical CHCs compare to students with only physical and only mental CHCs on stigma, health, and academic performance. This cross-sectional study of 201 university students examined Fall 2020 baseline data from a longitudinal investigation of the effects of stigma on health and academic performance in university students with CHCs. When compared to students with physical CHCs, students with both mental and physical CHCs reported higher levels of stigma awareness and internalized stigma as well as diminished physical quality of life (QoL), psychological QoL, and resilience to academic difficulties. Consistent with prior work, higher levels of internalized stigma were independently associated with higher levels of stress, specific academic difficulties, as well as diminished physical, psychological, and environmental QoL in students with both physical and mental CHCs. Findings from the current study support efforts to establish a causal link between higher levels of stigma-related processes and diminished health in future longitudinal investigations.