Coronavirus Pandemic Anxiety Scale (CPAS-11): development and initial validation.

Allan B. I. Bernardo,Angela Lorraine P. Cunanan,Norman B. Mendoza,Patricia D. Simon,Araceli Ma. Balajadia-Alcala,John Ian Wilzon T. Dizon,Jesus Enrique G. Saplala,Maria Caridad H. Tarroja

doi:10.1007/s12144-020-01193-2

Abstract

The mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will increase as the outbreak continues and persist even after the pandemic passes. We developed an 11-item Coronavirus Pandemic Anxiety Scale (CPAS-11) to measure symptoms of anxiety related to the COVID-19 pandemic to help identify individuals who might need mental health services. In developing the scale items, we considered previous research and theory on anxiety symptoms and symptoms reported by clinically referred cases in the Philippines. The scale was validated in a Filipino sample (N = 925). Exploratory factor analysis indicated two factors corresponding to somatic and non-somatic symptoms; confirmatory factor analysis showed good fit for the two-factor model. CPAS-11 showed good internal consistency, convergent and divergent validity, and screening accuracy. A cutoff score of 15 showed adequate sensitivity and specificity to distinguish GAD-7 screened participants. The results support the viability of CPAS-11 as a screening tool to identify individuals experiencing COVID-19-related anxiety.

Highlights

In May 2020, the World Health Organization (2020) called attention to the mental health impact of the global novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak that continues to spread in many parts of the world
Based on the exploratory factor analysis (EFA), we reduced the scale to 11 items, which comprise the Coronavirus Pandemic Anxiety Scale-11 (CPAS-11)
A two-factor structure was identified and confirmed, corresponding to somatic and non-somatic symptoms of anxiety related to the COVID-19 pandemic

Summary

Introduction

In May 2020, the World Health Organization (2020) called attention to the mental health impact of the global novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak that continues to spread in many parts of the world. Research on past natural and human-instigated disasters has shown that emotional distress and other psychological symptoms tend to pervade in affected populations, and this pattern shall be the case in populations affected by the COVID-19 pandemic (Pfefferbaum & North, 2020; Torales, O’Higgins, Castaldelli-Maia, & Ventriglio, 2020; Xiang et al, 2020) These mental health concerns may appear among individuals who have been infected by the COVID-19 virus, and among persons who experience loss of close family members, continuing risk of infection, long periods of social isolation (Xiao, Zhang, Kong, Li, & Yang, 2020), and among medical and health workers (Lu, Wang, Lin, & Li, 2020).

Methods

Results

Conclusion