The transition from adolescence into emerging adulthood is a rite of passage for all of us. Many of us stress over establishing our identity – who we are and what we will do with our lives – during this time. College students face a challenging adjustment to increasing academic demands and changing responsibilities while in a completely new environment. Social pressures can also cause stress and affect our choices.
While college students have been studied a lot, few studies ask what emerging adults need to stay healthy during this crucial developmental period. In fact, private and public institutions alike report a lack of resources on college campuses and estimate that the growing demand for mental health services has increased five times as much compared to what is actually available.
MAPme is an initiative that brings students and researchers together to investigate what they need most during this transition period. MAPme is unique in that students are on the front lines of this investigation. MAPme uses participant responses to help shape the conversation on health and substance use on campus. MAPme student ambassadors explore research questions and periodically share their findings with the college community.
Currently MAPme has two main study sites at Emory University and Kennesaw State University in Georgia, US.