Enhancing Wellness for the Online Student

The concept of developing and providing resources for student wellness in higher education emerged in the 1970s. College and University professionals agree that students are more successful when they have balance in areas of wellness. Resources have been provided for the residential student, but relatively few have been developed for the online student. This research project focused on answering the question of whether or not participation in a facilitated online course could be effective in increasing wellness behaviors of online graduate level students. An online wellness course was developed to provide education and resources designed to increase wellness behaviors. Volunteers were divided into control and experimental groups and given pretests and posttests to self-assess wellness behaviors. The experimental group participated in the wellness course which included discussion forums, educational exercises, and reflective journaling. Pretest results indicated a desire to improve in areas of wellness. Analysis of the experimental group posttest showed a trend toward increased wellness behaviors.

Autorentext

Lynda Tierney Konecny, D.H.Ed., M.S., is an Assistant Professor for A.T. Still University's School of Health Management. Dr. Konecny's vast experiences with fitness, wellness, and college student services inspire her interest in enhancing wellness for the online student.