Social Emotional Learning in Higher Education: A Systematic Literature Review and Framework for West Bengal's Institutions

The global mental health crisis among higher education students has reached critical proportions, with anxiety, depression, and loneliness escalating dramatically over the past decade. While Social Emotional Learning (SEL) has demonstrated efficacy in school-based settings, its application within higher educational institutions remains significantly under-theorized, particularly in the Global South and specifically within the Indian context. This study employs a rigorous methodological triangulation approach, integrating: (1) a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) of 187 peer-reviewed studies (2010-2025) from 23 countries following PRISMA guidelines, including a meta-analysis of 27 quantitative studies and meta-synthesis of 52 qualitative studies; (2) multiple case study analysis of three diverse international contexts (Singapore's MOE SEL Framework, University of British Columbia's Well-being Strategic Plan, and Tata Institute of Social Sciences' Student Support Systems); and (3) in-depth qualitative interviews with 42 students across three premier Kolkata institutions (St. Xavier's University, Presidency University, and Lady Brabourne College), analyzed using constructivist grounded theory with systematic member checking and respondent validation. The SLR identifies four critical gaps in existing SEL scholarship: developmental inappropriateness for emerging adults, individualistic focus obscuring structural factors, Western-centric cultural assumptions, and inequality blindness. Triangulation across literature, cases, and interviews—documented in a comprehensive triangulation matrix—reveals that student emotional well-being is shaped by invisible emotional navigation work, covert peer infrastructures, competency dissonance between family and institutional cultures, and institutional emotional architectures. Based on these integrated findings, we propose a comprehensive, contextually grounded SEL framework for West Bengal's Higher Education Institutes comprising four interconnected components with testable theoretical propositions: (1) Institutional Emotional Architecture addressing pedagogical practices, assessment regimes, physical spaces, and cultural norms; (2) Covert SEL Infrastructure Support cultivating peer micro-communities; (3) Competency Dissonance Navigation addressing cultural mismatches for first-generation and marginalized students; and (4) Stratified Burden Recognition acknowledging how socioeconomic background, caste, gender, and first-generation status shape emotional experience. The framework includes implementation fidelity indicators, cost-effectiveness considerations, and policy implications for Indian higher education, moving beyond individual skill-building toward institutional transformation. The study offers actionable strategies for university administrators, faculty, and policymakers addressing the student mental health crisis in the distinctive West Bengal context while providing theoretical propositions testable across Global South contexts.