An international research team, led by the University of Warwick and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), in collaboration with Friedrich-Alexander-Universität, recently published a scoping review in the journal Cogent Education. The review analyses the wellbeing of the academic community at universities in an educational environment surrounded by digital tools, in what researchers call “the post-pandemic digital education era”.
The study concludes that, although levels of psychological discomfort have stabilised when compared to critical peaks seen during the pandemic, the digital education scenario still represents a moderate psychological load for students. In addition, the study warns that there is an alarmingly low amount of data on the mental health of lecturers, the very professionals who made digital transition at universities possible.
Stabilising student wellbeing
The research encapsulates the data of seven international transversal studies conducted with a total of 3,744 students and indicates that the psychological discomfort of undergraduate students—measured through indicators of stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia and burnout—is currently at low or moderate levels. This data suggests that the mental health of students in the post-pandemic digital scenario is more stable than during the 2020 emergency situation, in which uncertainty and sudden changes caused the indicators of psychological discomfort to spike.
According to their findings, student satisfaction with digital tools is directly related to better mental health. In addition, in some cases online learning is perceived as a less stressful option when compared to classroom-based or hybrid versions, thanks to its flexibility. Nevertheless, researchers suggest that digital tools help only when they are well structured and easy to use.
Risk factors: "false" omnipresence, digital fatigue and social isolation
Despite this stabilisation, the report points to mental health risk factors. Access to virtual learning environments (VLE) "at any time and place " was described as a "double-edged sword". Although it offers autonomy, it also fosters overexposure and blurs the boundaries between academic and personal life, generating a hyperconnectivity that overburdens students and produces mental fatigue. The pressure of having always to be available and connected to digital environments, technical difficulties in managing new technologies, or too much information at once can generate an increase in technostress, stress associated to the constant use of digital devices.
Not only that, the lack of physical interactions and real social connections continues to be a negative factor within the educational experience, and loneliness once again resurfaces as a risk factor for psychological wellbeing, based on online learning and the abusive use of new technologies.
Insufficient data on lecturers’ mental health
One of the most relevant conclusions of the review is the lack of studies on the wellbeing of lecturers in the post-pandemic stage. Although lecturers were key players in the digital transformation, especially at universities, which were closed for almost two academic years from 2020 to 2022, current research has focused almost exclusively on undergraduate students.
The research team emphasises that support for lecturers is vital to mitigate students' technostress, but that it is still not known how this burden affects the mental health of the lecturers themselves.
Towards a comprehensive institutional approach
The study recommends that universities not only provide technological tools but also adopt a "whole institution" approach. This includes, on the one hand, establishing disconnection policies to schedule time to complete tasks within working hours and ensure scheduled digital disconnection, as well as usage reminders to avoid digital fatigue. On the other hand, carrying out self-management training is also recommended: i.e., helping students acquire the skills needed to manage distractions generated by mobile devices. Similarly, institutional support must be strengthened, since it has been shown that the help of the university and its tutors acts as an essential buffer against technological stress. It is therefore necessary to balance degrees and subjects with specialised support technicians to offer structured solutions that do not overload either students or lecturers.
According to the authors of the research, “post-pandemic digital education is not an emergency measure, but a permanent ecosystem”. Therefore, “there is a need for longitudinal studies that analyse more in depth the impact of digital learning throughout a student’s academic career and that include both lecturers and students, to guarantee a healthy and sustainable educational environment and optimal psychological development capable of mitigating mental fatigue and technostress associated with the abusive use of screens and digital devices", they conclude.

HealthyMindEd research project
This scoping review forms part of the HealthyMindEd project, which aims to promote healthy digital teaching and learning in the higher education sector. The HealthyMindEd (KA220-HED) project, funded by the European Union as part of the Erasmus+ programme and launched in January 2025, has brought together the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (Germany), the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, the University of Warwick (UK), and the Media & Learning association (Belgium) to analyse and disseminate the effects of digitisation on the mental and social health of members of the academic community (lecturers and students). It also will propose specific solutions that will be included in a good practices guide.