Demographics, Socioeconomic Status, Social Distancing, Psychosocial Factors and Psychological Well-Being among Undergraduate Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Andréa Neiva Da Silva,Elaine Silva Miranda,Mario Vianna Vettore,Cláudia Du Bocage Santos-Pinto,Larissa Machado Ferreira,Carla Ribeiro Guedes

doi:10.3390/ijerph18147215

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted on academic routine because of the social distancing measures. This study examined the relationships of sociodemographic characteristics, social distancing aspects and psychosocial factors on psychosocial well-being among undergraduate students during the social distancing period due to COVID-19. A web-based survey was conducted of undergraduate students at a public university in Brazil (n = 620). Demographics, socioeconomic status (SES), social distancing factors, negative affectivity (DASS-21), sense of coherence (SOC-13), social support and psychosocial well-being (GHQ-12) were measured. The direct and indirect links between was variables was tested using structural equation modelling. The estimated model showed that greater social support, higher sense of coherence and lower negative affectivity were directly associated with better psychological well-being. Female gender, higher SES, not working during the social distancing period and availability of online modules were indirectly associated with psychological well-being through psychosocial factors. Working during the social distancing period and availability of online modules mediated the link of age, gender, SES with psychological well-being. Our findings suggest the need to provide psychological support, online teaching and financial aid to undergraduate students during the social distancing period due to COVID-19 pandemic to improve their psychological well-being.

Highlights

The new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), initially detected in China in the end of2020, was quickly disseminated into different countries
The aim of this study was to test the relationships between demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status (SES), social distancing aspects, psychosocial factors and psychosocial well-being among undergraduate students during the social distancing period due to COVID-19
Demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status, social distancing factors and psychosocial factors are presented for the total sample and according to General Health Questionnaire-12 items (GHQ-12) groups in Psychological Well-Being

Summary

Introduction

The new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), initially detected in China in the end of. 2020, was quickly disseminated into different countries. Once the SARS-Cov-2 virus related to COVID-19 proved to be highly contagious, the World Health Organization Emergency. Committee declared that the outbreak constituted a Public Health Emergency of International Concern [1,2]. The COVID-19 pandemic was considered a global and unprecedented sanitary crisis resulting in the adoption of different measures to reduce the transmission of the disease. Several universities across the world interrupted academic activities. In some places, there was a shift from in-campus to online teaching, with educational and mental health implications for nearly 80% of the university students worldwide [3,4].

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