Risk and Protective Factors for Poorer Overall Health, Increased Psychological Distress, and Suicidal Ideation Due to SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in the General Japanese Population

Abstract

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) outbreak is expected to have harmed the mental health of numerous people worldwide. Therefore, the present study was aimed to explore the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak on the overall health of the general Japanese population, with a particular focus on identifying the factors associated with a requirement for mental health treatment. Japanese residents aged 18 years and above were surveyed online, and among the 1,500 obtained responses included for analysis, 14% reported severe psychological distress, and 8.9% indicated high suicidal ideation. A multiple regression analysis of the collected data revealed that “insufficient exercise” could significantly predict physical health (β = -0.23, SE = 0.03), while the life event stressors that could significantly predict mental health were the personality trait “neuroticism” (β = -0.16, SE = 0.03), and the life stressors of “outbreak-related mental health problems” (β = -0.22, SE = 0.03) and “uncertainty regarding the future” (β = -0.12, SE = 0.03). The personality traits of “agreeableness” (β = -0.08, SE = 0.02) and “neuroticism” (β = 0.22, SE = 0.02), and the factors “social support” (β = -0.12, SE = 0.02), “outbreak-related mental health problems” (β = 0.21, SE = 0.02), “uncertainty regarding the future” (β = 0.14, SE = 0.02), and “declining duration and quality of sleep” (β = 0.10, SE = 0.02) could predict psychological distress. Suicidal ideation was predicted by “neuroticism” (β = 0.11, SE = 0.03), “social support” (β = -0.27, SE = 0.03), and “having a psychiatric disorder” (β = 0.18, SE = 0.03). The results of the present study suggest that due to the spread of SARS-CoV-2, much of the Japanese population could be in requirement of psychiatric care. In particular, the individuals who rated high for the risk factors and low for the protective factors might require proactive support.