2.3 Socio-economic effects on learner mental health
In Week 1 you were introduced to Dahlgren and Whitehead’s model for the social determinants of health and the concept of intersectionality. According to that model and concept, financial difficulties can interact with the social and cultural ones previously described to increase learner disadvantage (Crenshaw, 1989). Financial strain is common among adult learners who often have to pay significant course fees and may also need to reduce their working hours, or pay for additional childcare, while studying. This can create additional financial pressures, despite the longer term aim of increasing their earning potential through their educational qualification.
The added stress of financial worries, even temporarily, may affect decision-making, problem-solving and creative thinking and, as a result, learning generally becomes harder (Mani et al., 2013). Under performing may add to feelings of failure and guilt that can negatively impact on confidence and self-esteem. This may be reinforced by social stigmas which falsely assume that people in poverty are abdicating responsibility for their lives or are less intelligent (Mullainathan and Elder, 2013). These authors have also shown that financial stress leads to impaired performance on various cognitive and life tasks. Although brief experience of different types of scarcity may be useful in focusing the mind, longer term shortage – for example in terms of lacks in job security, housing, finance and food – can be very damaging (Diggle et al., 2017; Mullainathan and Elder, 2013). In learners, such scarcity and financial, or other, economic deprivation can result in increased levels of anxiety and impaired performance in academic tasks.
Activity _unit7.3.3 Activity 7 Support for learners in financial difficulty
This activity refers to financial hardship, which may be triggering if this has been a difficult memory or experience for you. If you would rather avoid recalling this you can skip this activity or go directly to Section 3 which focuses on support.
Think of a time when you were short of money. What short- and/or long-term effect did this have on your stress levels and physical and mental health? Did it impair your decision-making and problem-solving skills and ability to cope?
How might you become aware that a learner is experiencing financial difficulties?
What financial support services does your institution offer?
Discussion
Your institution may offer practical support for those in financial difficulty such as childcare, advice on finance and time management, food vouchers, or small grants and financial aid. It’s useful to familiarise yourself with internal and external services like this that may be available for your learners, and which they may not be aware of or know how to access. It can also be helpful to gather knowledge about local and community financial support services, such as food banks, to share with learners. Do remember discretion when raising awareness of financial support services with learners to avoid embarrassment. Cultural competence is also important here, for example demonstrating awareness that some religions do not support loans or interest on loans.