Practical and Emotional Problems Reported by Users of a Self-guided Digital Problem-solving Intervention During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Content Analysis.

Amira Hentati,Erik Forsell,Brjánn Ljótsson,Martin Kraepelien

doi:10.2196/31722

Abstract

BackgroundTo better direct assessments and interventions toward the general population during both the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and future crises with societal restrictions, data on the types of practical and emotional problems that people are experiencing are needed.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to examine the types of practical and emotional problems that the general population is experiencing during the COVID-19 pandemic and to construct an empirically derived inventory based on the findings.MethodsA total of 396 participants, recruited among members of the general public in Sweden who were experiencing practical and/or emotional problems during the pandemic, accessed a self-guided digital problem-solving intervention for a period of 1 week to report and solve the problems they experienced. Prior to accessing the intervention, the participants completed a short self-assessment regarding symptoms of depression and anxiety. Content analysis was used to account for the types of problems participants reported. A set of items for an inventory was later proposed based on the problem categories derived from the analysis.ResultsA majority of participants had clinically relevant symptoms of either depression or anxiety. The problems reported were categorized as 13 distinct types of problems. The most common problem was difficulty managing daily activities. Based on the categories, a 13-item inventory was proposed.ConclusionsThe 13 types of problems, and the proposed inventory, could be valuable when composing assessments and interventions for the general population during the ongoing pandemic or similar crises with societal restrictions. The most common problem was of a practical nature, indicating the importance of including examples of such problems within assessments and interventions.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT04677270; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04677270

Highlights

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic is considered a threat to the mental well-being of the general public and may increase the suicide risk for some people [1,2]
The focus lies on the types of practical and emotional problems that the general help-seeking population in Sweden reported experiencing during the COVID-19 pandemic when using a self-guided digital problem-solving intervention
COVID-19–related practical and emotional problems experienced by the Swedish help-seeking population were examined during the use of a self-guided digital problem-solving intervention

Summary

Introduction

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic is considered a threat to the mental well-being of the general public and may increase the suicide risk for some people [1,2]. Because worry is only one possible problem experienced by the general population during the COVID-19 pandemic [8], there is a need to assess what types of practical and emotional problems the general population is experiencing This could facilitate the direction of assessments and interventions toward the general public both during the ongoing pandemic and in future similar crises. To better direct assessments and interventions toward the general population during both the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and future crises with societal restrictions, data on the types of practical and emotional problems that people are experiencing are needed. Conclusions: The 13 types of problems, and the proposed inventory, could be valuable when composing assessments and interventions for the general population during the ongoing pandemic or similar crises with societal restrictions.

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Methods

Results

Conclusion