Skip to Main Content

Counseling Psychology and Psychotherapy
2021. Vol. 29, no. 1, 9–27
doi:10.17759/cpp.2021290102
ISSN: 2075-3470 / 2311-9446 (online)

Psychological Response and Mechanisms of Adaptation to Stress Caused by Covid-19 Pandemic

1217

I.S. Korotkova, M.V. Iakovleva, O.Y. Shchelkova, D.A. Eremina

PDF (RUS)
Online translation in english
GS
Information
in Google Scholar

Abstract

The article presents the results of a study aimed at analyzing the emotional state of participants (levels of anxiety and depression), their psychological strategies for coping with stress, and their level of perceived stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. The online study, conducted in March-May 2020, involved 629 people aged 18—67 (М=33.27, SD=10.6). Demographic and psychosocial data of the respondents were obtained by means of a structured interview. The methods also included the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Spielberger’s Test Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and the Ways of Coping Questionnaire (WCQ). It was found that 30.3% of the interviewed respondents had anxiety, and 4.7% had depressive symptoms that required psychological intervention. The results revealed that healthcare providers who were not directly involved in working with COVID-19 patients were less prone to depression (p<0,05) than respondents with other professions; they had a tendency to use problem-focused coping strategies and were more inclined to follow WHO guidelines for preventing the spread of COVID-19.

General Information

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, adaptation, stress, anxiety, stress coping, health¬care providers

Journal rubric: Empirical Researches

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17759/cpp.2021290102

For citation: Korotkova I.S., Iakovleva M.V., Shchelkova O.Y., Eremina D.A. Psychological Response and Mechanisms of Adaptation to Stress Caused by Covid-19 Pandemic. Konsul'tativnaya psikhologiya i psikhoterapiya = Counseling Psychology and Psychotherapy, 2021. Vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 9–27. DOI: 10.17759/cpp.2021290102. (In Russ., аbstr. in Engl.)

References

  1. Ababkov V.A., Baryshnikova K., Vorontsova-Venger O.V., et al. Validizatsiya russkoyazychnoi versii oprosnika “Shkala vosprinimaemogo stressa-10” [Validation of the Russian version of the questionnaire “Scale of perceived stress—10”]. Vestnik SPbGU. Seriya 16: Psikhologiya. Pedagogika = Saint Petersburg University Bulletin. Series 16: Psychology. Pedagogy, 2016, no. 2, pp. 6—15. DOI:10.21638/11701/spbu16.2016.202s
  2. Vasserman L.I., Ababkov V.A., Trifonova E.A. Sovladanie so stressom: teoriya i psikhodiagnostika. Uchebno-metodicheskoe posobie [Coping with stress: Theory and psychodiagnostics. Study guide]. Saint Petersburg: Rech’, 2010. 192 p.
  3. Matyushkina E.Y., Roi A.P., Rakhmanina A.A., et al. Professional’nyi stress i professional’noe vygoranie u meditsinskikh rabotnikov [Occupational stress and burnout among healthcare professionals] []. Sovremennaia zarubezhnaia psikhologiia = Journal of Modern Foreign Psychology, 2020. Vol. 9 (1), pp. 39—49. Available at: https://psyjournals.ru/jmfp/2020/n1/Matyushkina_et_al.shtml (Accessed 16.11.2020). DOI:10.17759/jmfp.2020090104. (In Russ.).
  4. Petrikov S.S., Kholmogorova A.B., Suroegina A.Yu., et al. Professional’noe vygoranie, simptomy emotsional’nogo neblagopoluchiya i distressa u meditsinskikh rabotnikov vo vremya epidemii COVID-19 [Professional burnout, symptoms of emotional disorders and distress among healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 epidemic]. Konsul’tativnaya psikhologiya i psikhoterapiya = Counseling Psychology and Psychotherapy, 2020. Vol. 28 (2), pp. 8—45. DOI:10.17759/ cpp.2020280202. (In Russ., abstr. in Engl.).
  5. Khanin Yu.L. Kratkoe rukovodstvo k primeneniyu shkaly reaktivnoi lichnostnoi trevozhnosti Ch.D. Spilbergera [A brief guide to the use of the scale of reactive personal anxiety of Ch.D. Spielberger]. Leningrad: LNIIFK, 1976. 40 p.
  6. Brooks S.K., Webster R.K., Smith L.E., et al. The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: rapid review of the evidence. Lancet, 2020. Vol. 395 (10227), pp. 912—920. DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30460-8
  7. How the 4 biggest outbreaks since the start of this century shattered some long-standing myths [Elektronnyi resurs]. World Health Organization, 2020. Available at: www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/ebola-6-months/myths/en/ (Accessed 26.11.2020).
  8. Kang L., Ma S., Chen M., et al. Impact on mental health and perceptions of psychological care among medical and nursing staff in Wuhan during the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease Outbreak: A cross-sectional study. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 2020. Vol. 87, pp. 11—17. DOI:10.1016/j.bbi.2020.03.028
  9. Kisely S., Warren N., McMahon L., et al. Occurrence, prevention, and management of the psychological effects of emerging virus outbreaks on healthcare workers: Rapid review and meta-analysis [Elektronnyi resurs]. BMJ, 2020. Vol. 369. Available at: https://www.bmj.com/content/369/bmj.m1642 (Accessed 25.11.2020). DOI:10.1136/bmj.m1642
  10. Koffman J., Gross J., Etkind S.N., et al. Uncertainty and COVID-19: How are we to respond? Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 2020. Vol. 113 (6), pp. 211— 216. DOI:10.1177/0141076820930665
  11.  Liu C.Y., Yang Y.Z., Zhang X.M., et al. The prevalence and influencing factors in anxiety in medical workers fighting COVID-19 in China: A cross-sectional survey [Elektronnyi resurs]. Epidemiology and Infection, 2020. Vol. 148. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7251286/ (Accessed 25.11.2020). DOI:10.1017/S0950268820001107
  12. Mazza C., Ricci E., Biondi S., et al. A nationwide survey of psychological distress among Italian people during the COVID-19 pandemic: Immediate psychological responses and associated factors [Elektronnyi resurs]. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2020. Vol. 17 (9). Available at: https:// www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/9/3165/htm (Accessed 15.11.2020). DOI:10.3390/ ijerph17093165
  13. Qiu J., Shen B., Zhao M., et al. A nationwide survey of psychological distress among Chinese people in the COVID-19 epidemic: Implications and policy recommendations [Elektronnyi resurs]. General Psychiatry, 2020. Vol. 33 (2). Available at: https://gpsych.bmj.com/content/33/2/e100213 (Accessed 10.11.2020). DOI:10.1136/gpsych-2020-100213
  14. Samadarshi S.C.A., Sharma S., Bhatta J. An online survey of factors associated with self-perceived stress during the initial stage of the COVID-19 outbreak in Nepal [Elektronnyi resurs]. The Ethiopian Journal of Health Development, 2020. Vol. 34 (2). Available at: https://ejhd.org/index.php/ejhd/article/view/2968/1437 (Accessed 12.11.2020).
  15. Wang C., Pan R., Wan X., et al. Immediate psychological responses and associated factors during the initial stage of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic among the general population in China [Elektronnyi resurs]. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2020. Vol. 17 (5). Available at: https:// www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/5/1729/htm (Accessed 20.11.2020). DOI:10.3390/ ijerph17051729
  16. Xiang Y.T., Yang Y., Li W., et al. Timely mental health care for the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak is urgently needed. Lancet. Psychiatry, 2020. Vol. 7 (3), pp. 228—229. DOI:10.1016/S2215-0366(20)30046-8
  17. Zhang Y., Ma Z.F. Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and quality of life among local residents in Liaoning Province, China: A cross-sectional study [Elektronnyi resurs]. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2020. Vol. 17 (7). Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/1660- 4601/17/7/2381/htm (Accessed 21.11.2020). DOI:10.3390/ijerph17072381
  18. Zigmond A., Snaith R. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 1983. Vol. 67 (6), pp. 361—370. DOI:10.1111/j.1600-0447.1983. tb09716.x

Information About the Authors

Inga S. Korotkova, PhD in Psychology, Senior Lecturer, Department of Medical Psychology and Psychophysiology, Saint Petersburg State University, St.Petersburg, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9614-4329, e-mail: pemphix@mail.ru

Maria V. Iakovleva, PhD in Psychology, Associate Professor of the Department of Medical Psychology and Psychophysiology, Saint-Petersburg State University, St.Petersburg, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5035-4382, e-mail: m.v.yakovleva@spbu.ru

Olga Y. Shchelkova, Doctor of Psychology, Head of the Chair of Clinical Psychology & Psychophysiology, St. Petersburg State University, St.Petersburg, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9444-4742, e-mail: olga.psy.pu@mail.ru

Daria A. Eremina, PhD in Psychology, Senior Lecturer, Department of Medical Psychology and Psychophysiology, St. Petersburg State University, St.Petersburg, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0076-0347, e-mail: daria.a.eremina@gmail.com

Metrics

Views

Total: 2075
Previous month: 37
Current month: 27

Downloads

Total: 1217
Previous month: 7
Current month: 4