Coping strategies of students for anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in China: a cross-sectional study.

Mohammad Nurunnabi,Syed Far Abid Hossain Hossain,Areej Sukayt,Heba Bakr Khoshaim,Karuthan Chinna,Sheela Sundarasen,Gul Mohammad Baloch,Xu Shan,Kamilah Kamaludin

doi:10.12688/f1000research.25557.1

Abstract

Background: COVID-19 has severely affected university students everywhere in the world. Due to fear of infection, government and local authorities in China immediately closed academic institutions and tried to find survival techniques to cope with market turbulence. COVID-19 was present in China at the end of 2019. However, little attention has been paid by researchers to coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic, and few measures were taken to assess the coping strategies of university students, specifically following the closure of their institutions. To address this gap, this study attempted to discover the coping strategies of Chinese students during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Methods: We conducted an online survey using a semi-structured questionnaire with a simple random sampling technique and received 559 responses. The survey questions captured information about students' lives during the COVID-19 outbreak, actions to control anxiety, and what students care about during the pandemic. The associations between coping strategies used and levels of anxiety were tested using analysis of variance (ANOVA) procedures. SPSS Statistics v27 was used for statistical analysis in this study. Results: The university students reported that coping strategies and survival techniques were required due to high levels of anxiety and psychological pressure during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the respondents reported the prompt closure of their academic institutions due to COVID-19. Psychological concerns, such as lack of sleep, emotional support, mental support and social appeal, were also reported. Conclusions: This is one of the very first studies on coping strategies for anxiety in China. The study reveals that university students employ a number of coping strategies in relation to COVID-19, but also suggests a need to strengthen such strategies in this population. However, the study was limited to a small number of provinces in China, which may affect the generalizability of the research.

Highlights

The COVID-19 outbreak infected mainland China and the surrounding regions drastically at the end of 2019
The study reveals that university students employ a number of coping strategies in relation to COVID-19, and suggests a need to strengthen such strategies in this population
The study was limited to a small number of provinces in China, which may affect the generalizability of the research

Summary

Introduction

The COVID-19 outbreak infected mainland China and the surrounding regions drastically at the end of 2019. The mobility of the population was controlled with severe restrictions at a national level, and social distancing was monitored as well as encouraged with a compulsory quarantine period of two weeks for returning migratory personnel. Reflecting these containment measures, the economy contracted by 6.8% in the first quarter (CNBC 20201). Little attention has been paid by researchers to coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic, and few measures were taken to assess the coping strategies of university students, following the closure of their institutions To address this gap, this study attempted to discover the coping strategies of Chinese students during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Psychological concerns, such as lack of sleep, emotional support, mental support and social appeal, were reported

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