Unmasking the psychological impact of the early COVID-19 pandemic in young adults: results from a cross-sectional online survey.

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic emerged as an international public health emergency and threat to individual psychological resilience.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the prevalence of psychological issues and identify key associations with mental health indicators in young adults (ages 18-28) worldwide during the initial phase of the pandemic.

METHODS

Through a cross-sectional online survey utilizing convenience sampling, we collected data on demographics, COVID-19-related questions, depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-9), anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7), stress/trauma (Impact of Event Scale-Revised), and fear of COVID-19 (Fear of COVID-19 scale) between September 2020-January 2021. A total of 183 were eligible analysis. All statistical analyses were set at alpha = 0.05.

RESULTS

Over 70% of participants reported mild anxiety (n=129), 80% mild depression (n=136), 40% pandemic-related trauma (n=61), and 50% high fear (n=88). Female respondents reported higher anxiety (t(173)=-3.352, <.001), depression (t(166)=-3.310, P=.001), and trauma from COVID-19 ((t(151)=-2.004, P=.047). Hispanic/Latino/a/x participants reported higher depression (F(2,156)=7.761, P<.001) and trauma scores (F(2,143)=3.999, P=.020). Age in 2020 was associated with trauma total scores (F(1,154)=4.230, P=0.041, R2 = 0.027). Individuals who were mandated a quarantine were linked to lower levels of anxiety (F(2,175)=3.442, P=.034) and depression (F(2,170)=3.092, P =.048) than those not mandated. Those quarantined with close contacts were linked to lower anxiety (t(162.184)=2.705, P =.008) and trauma (t(149)=2.169; P=.032). Close contacts' hospitalization from COVID-19 infections were linked to lower anxiety (t(127)=2.855, P=.005), depression(t(123)=3.111, P=.002), and trauma (t(152)=-1.975, P=.050).

CONCLUSION

The findings highlight the significant effect COVID-19 had on mental health in young adults worldwide.