Abstract
Due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and consequent confinement measures, young people are vulnerable to mental health problems. The current study compared a group of 440 young adolescents (10–12 years) and a group of 330 emerging adults (18–25 years) to investigate the extent to which perceived social support and psychological capital (PsyCap) were differentially associated with mental health problems. Participants were asked to report their current psychosocial adaptation status during the COVID-19 pandemic, and data were collected via online questionnaires during a relatively severe period of COVID-19 in China. Results of the multi-group path analysis indicated that the effect of perceived social support on mental health problems was mediated by PsyCap for young adolescents, but not for emerging adults. These results were discussed with respect to the mechanism of how social support and PsyCap serve as protective mental health factors for youth in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Highlights
The impact of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been expanding from social economy to individual health since its outbreak at the end of 2019
As expected, perceived social support and psychological capital were positively correlated, and these two variables were both negatively correlated with mental health problems
The main purpose of the current study was to examine age differences regarding the benefits of perceived social support and psychological capital (PsyCap) on the mental health of adolescents and emerging adults during the COVID-19 pandemic
Summary
The impact of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been expanding from social economy to individual health since its outbreak at the end of 2019. Depression, and stress are common mental health problems experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Social support, defined as either psychological or material resources, is regarded as a protective resource that helps individuals cope with stress (Cohen, 2004). Perceived social support is reported to be associated with reduced symptoms from a series of mental disorders, such as major depressive disorder (MDD), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), after stressful events (Price et al, 2018). It has been shown that a high level of perceived social support from multiple sources is associated with better physical and psychological health (Fang et al, 2020). Social support may be of great importance for protecting one from mental health problems, especially in a crisis, such as the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic
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