Banca de DEFESA: FERNANDA VIANA FERNANDES

ANALYSIS OF THE PERCEPTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION STUDENTS OF A FEDERAL EDUCATION INSTITUTE, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ABOUT STUDENT EXPERIENCE AND MENTAL HEALTH

Health. Higher education. Students.

Experiences lived in university trajectory and support found are essential for the mental health of higher education students besides contributing their permanence and academic exercise. The specific expressions of university environment, such as built relationships, pressures, uncertainties and expectations are some of circumstances experienced by students. Research aimed analyze the perceptions of university students from a Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Bahia-IFBA about the relationship between student life and their mental health conditions. Seeking identify the main difficulties experienced in the process of estrangement, learning and overcoming strategies, as well deepening knowledge about factors related their mental health conditions. The study had exploratory character of qualitative nature using focus group technique to enable production of data and as way to analyze them perspective of thematic content analysis was used. Thus units of meaning were constructed, which gave rise to three main categories: difficulties in trajectory and consequences for students' mental health; ease in student trajectory and its consequences for students' mental health and mental health promotion strategies.In summary, the main difficulties experienced in the university career affect the mental health of students refer to arrival at Institute and relations with new environment, as well the conflicting relations between teachers and students, the absence of socialization. As facilitating experiences of adaptation and improvement of mental health, there affiliation strategies. Through organization of time and activities, and factors such as establishment of affective bonds with colleagues. Appropriation of space and also positive relationships between teachers and students. Other actions are still necessary aiming at healthy insertion in university environment, contemplating dimension of mental health promotion. Main strategies cited were qualified listening, welcoming, establishment of living and leisure spaces within the Campus. Teachers with ability to understand individual, collective reality and with better didactic-pedagogical practices. Thus concluded higher education institutions are spaces of multiple facets, capable of causing great suffering and illness in subjects involved in teaching-learning processes. As well have potential to become health promoting environments through attitudes that have as guidelines the promotion of mental health their students and that guarantees student permanence.