A Situational-Event Approach to Understanding the Psychological Well/Ill-Being of University Students

The article presents a situational-event approach in the perspective of academic research on the psychological well/ill-being of students, and the development of sound student support service programs. The target group, young people studying, has a high psychological vulnerability due to high social requirements and a special timing of developmental tasks. Situations are a subjective reflection of the circumstances in which the person is. An event is a change in the subjective picture of a life path. Situations and events as the factors of well/ill-being can be ordered in terms of their probability, typicality and chance of being prevented or mitigated. In the Russian tradition, the umbrella concept in relation to events and situations is a difficult life situation. Empirical studies show that the most typical difficulties in students are related to the academic sphere, and their possible resolution has a different locus and agent. In conclusion, a brief overview of relevant methods for studying difficulties in student life is given. The limitations of existing research and the prospects for the development of a situational-event approach are described.

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