In Fraternities and Mental Health: Supporting Emotional Well-Being Among Members and Across Campus, The Jed Foundation (JED) sheds light on how fraternities impact mental health on college campuses and offers recommendations to national fraternity leadership, administrators, and student leaders for enhancing mental health on college campuses, both inside and outside of fraternities. 

Fraternities have a substantial influence — both positive and negative — on college culture in the United States. That influence comes with benefits and challenges for members and the larger campus community. Social fraternities include community-service requirements that benefit the communities they are part of and offer social and career benefits, but fraternity culture can also promote heavy drinking, sexual assault, and hazing — issues that can harm the mental health and well-being of both fraternity members and other students on campus.

The report combines two novel studies, literature reviews, and data analysis. This research highlights the complex effects of fraternity membership on mental health among members and the campuses they impact and offers recommendations for improving mental health supports and promoting emotional well-being in fraternities and campuswide.

1. Being part of a fraternity can create a sense of belonging and help members establish stronger social networks.
2. The benefits fraternities offer may buffer mental health challenges for their members.
3. Alcohol and other substance misuse is common in some fraternity settings and poses significant threats to well-being — for both members and nonmembers. 
4. Fraternity members are more likely to commit sexual harassment and assault, harming the mental health of victims and campus safety overall.
5. Students who are not part of fraternity life see fraternities as central to campus social life, but also see them as posing important risks to the well-being of the larger campus community.
6. Fraternity members indicate that key factors in improving mental health are increased awareness of their own and others’ needs and a greater ability to respond positively and respectfully. 

1. Make mental health a priority and set up systems for assessment and tracking. 
2. Affirm and build on what is working by acknowledging and building upon fraternities’ strengths: creating connectedness and belonging.
3. Address clear challenges to mental health, particularly substance misuse, hazing, and norms related to exploitative sexual behavior.
4. Work to reduce shame and secrecy around help-seeking.
5. Enhance self-awareness, capacity for vulnerability, and opportunities for self-care.
6. Conduct regular screenings to identify students at risk.
7. Develop and follow crisis-management procedures.
8. Make it easy to access resources. 
9. Educate and enable alumni to support current member needs.