Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic created major challenges to students' mental health. Research that university students continue to experience mental health challenges due to the changes in higher education and the increased technology integration in the post-COVID-19 era. The objective of this study was to examine association between academic stress related to technology integration and students' mental health problems (MHPs), with digital fatigue as a mediating variable and loneliness as a moderating variable. The study's research design was a cross-sectional survey. This study was guided by Job-Demands Resources (JD-R) Theory. The data were collected online from 388 university students through the post-COVID-19 University Students' Well-being Scale (PC-USWS). Academic stress was significantly associated with mental health problems (β = .639, SE = .04, 95% CI [.566, .713], t = 17.12, p 2 = .43). Digital fatigue partially explained the association between academic stress and mental health problems (ab = .18, SE = .04, 95% CI [.107, .261], Z = 4.64, p 2 = .51). The interaction between academic stress and loneliness was also statistically significant (βAS*Lo = .11, SE = .05, 95% CI [.008, .215], Z = 2.16, p = .03). The study suggests a more effective use of digital tools and greater socialization among students to improve their mental health. This study had several practical, policy, and research implications.