Iranian Adolescent Girls’ Related-anxiety Factors During and Post-COVID-19: A Systematic Review Study

Abstract

Background and Objectives: During the COVID-19 pandemic, school closures, and home quarantine measures resulted in a myriad of mental health challenges for teenagers, notably heightened levels of stress and anxiety, with far-reaching implications. Against this backdrop, the current study identifies the factors associated with anxiety and fear among adolescent girls during both the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent post-pandemic period. Methods: This study conducted a comprehensive review using related keywords, such as anxiety, fear, phobia, adolescent, teenager, teen, coronavirus, corona, and COVID-19. Specifically, articles with Iranian affiliations were investigated in PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and SID databases from July 19 to August 26, 2023. Results: A comprehensive analysis of 16 studies revealed significant associations between various factors and the level of COVID-19 anxiety among teenagers. Specifically, factors such as effective communication skills, robust social support networks, mindfulness practices, resilience, and optimistic attitudes mitigated COVID-19 anxiety levels. Conversely, factors such as insomnia, excessive exposure to news updates, and prolonged periods of quarantine were associated with heightened COVID-19 anxiety levels among teenagers. Conclusions: Adolescents have exhibited psychological vulnerability amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly manifesting symptoms of anxiety and fear. The reviewed studies primarily focused on elucidating the associations between various factors and anxiety levels. Hence, future research endeavors are encouraged to delve into investigating efficacious methodologies fortifying these associations and bolstering beneficial factors. This approach is vital for averting the deleterious consequences of anxiety in the post-COVID-19 era.