Abstract
Background: We examined the presence of five maladaptive personality trait domains and 14 personality disorder traits from DSM-5 with regard to attitudes towards the COVID-19 virus, i.e., whether viewed as a serious threat (COVID-19 Group) or not (Denier/Minimizer Group). Method: 146 undergraduate and graduate students in India participated online to answer the questionnaire. Ages ranged from 18 to 33 years old (100 men, 46 women). Results: Consistent with hypotheses, the COVID-19 Group (n = 66) scored significantly higher on the negative affectivity and detachment trait domains and higher on the avoidant and depressive personality disorder traits than the Denier/Minimizer Group (n = 77). Contrary to hypotheses, the COVID-19 Group scored significantly higher on the disinhibition trait domain and Borderline personality disorder scale. Importantly, 20.3% of the COVID-19 Group endorsed the current suicidal ideation item compared to only 11.7% of the Denier/Minimizer Group. While a greater percentage of the COVID-19 Group adhered to the pandemic precautions, a majority of participants in both groups were compliant with social distancing, handwashing/sanitizing, and face-masking. Conclusion: Gaining an understanding of these personality variations might assist in establishing efficient public health actions to mitigate health threats.
Highlights
IntroductionThe novel coronavirus disease 2019 (better known as COVID-19) emerged towards the end of 2019 and spread rapidly worldwide (Gralinski & Menachery, 2020; Petrosillo et al, 2020)
We examined the presence of five maladaptive personality trait domains and 14 personality disorder traits from DSM-5 with regard to attitudes towards the COVID-19 virus, i.e., whether viewed as a serious threat (COVID-19 Group) or not (Denier/Minimizer Group)
While a greater percentage of the COVID-19 Group adhered to the pandemic precautions, a majority of participants in both groups were compliant with social distancing, handwashing/sanitizing, and face-masking
Summary
The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (better known as COVID-19) emerged towards the end of 2019 and spread rapidly worldwide (Gralinski & Menachery, 2020; Petrosillo et al, 2020) This infection was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization on 11th March 2020, with 118,000 confirmed cases accompanied by over 4200 deaths in 114 countries (WHO, 2020a). We examined the presence of five maladaptive personality trait domains and 14 personality disorder traits from DSM-5 with regard to attitudes towards the COVID-19 virus, i.e., whether viewed as a serious threat (COVID-19 Group) or not (Denier/Minimizer Group). Results: Consistent with hypotheses, the COVID-19 Group (n = 66) scored significantly higher on the negative affectivity and detachment trait domains and higher on the avoidant and depressive personality disorder traits than the Denier/Minimizer Group (n = 77). Conclusion: Gaining an understanding of these personality variations might assist in establishing efficient public health actions to mitigate health threats
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