Abstract
In context of the current COVID-19 pandemic the consumption of pandemic-related media coverage may be an important factor that is associated with anxiety and psychological distress. Aim of the study was to examine those associations in the general population in Germany. 6233 participants took part in an online-survey (March 27th–April 6th, 2020), which included demographic information and media exploitation in terms of duration, frequency and types of media. Symptoms of depression, unspecific anxiety and COVID-19 related anxiety were ascertained with standardized questionnaires. Frequency, duration and diversity of media exposure were positively associated with more symptoms of depression and unspecific and COVID-19 specific anxiety. We obtained the critical threshold of seven times per day and 2.5 h of media exposure to mark the difference between mild and moderate symptoms of (un)specific anxiety and depression. Particularly the usage of social media was associated with more pronounced psychological strain. Participants with pre-existing fears seem to be particularly vulnerable for mental distress related to more immoderate media consumption. Our findings provide some evidence for problematical associations of COVID-19 related media exposure with psychological strain and could serve as an orientation for recommendations—especially with regard to the thresholds of critical media usage.
Highlights
During the last months, the COVID-19 pandemic has grown to the most serious international health problem of the last decades and represents a substantial challenge for communities all over the world
We investigated whether there is a specific risk of psychological distress related to media consumption in individuals who already suffered from health-related fears to gain an insight into susceptible vulnerability factors
Using a comparable web-based cross-sectional design and language-validated versions of the seven-item generalized anxiety disorder scale (GAD-7) and the WHOFive Well-Being Index (WHO-5), Gao and colleagues found the severity of anxiety and depression to be significantly positively correlated with the frequency of self-reported media usage regarding COVID-19 within more than 4000 citizens [18]
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic has grown to the most serious international health problem of the last decades and represents a substantial challenge for communities all over the world. In this context, the role of the media has become quite essential on different levels. The role of the media has become quite essential on different levels They are important sources of information with regard to topics (in)directly related to the virus (e.g., infection rates, measures of the government, recommendations of the public health authorities, or the economic and social situation). Social media may further hold the potential to (partly) bridge the problems resulting from the restrictions of the face-to-face contact.
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