Coping Orientation of Academic Community in the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Pilot Multi-Country Survey Study

Abstract

In this paper, we have mapped the coping methods used to address the coronavirus pandemic by members of the academic community. We conducted an anonymous survey of a convenient sample of 674 faculty/staff members and students from September to December 2020. A modified version of the RCOPE scale was used for data collection. The results indicate that both religious and existential coping methods were used by respondents. The study also indicates that even though 71% of informants believed in God or another religious figure, 61% reported that they had tried to gain control of the situation directly without the help of God or another religious figure. The ranking of the coping strategies used indicates that the first five methods used by informants were all non-religious coping methods (i.e., secular existential coping methods): regarding life as a part of a greater whole, regarding nature as an important resource, listening to the sound of surrounding nature, being alone and contemplating, and walking/engaging in any activities outdoors giving a spiritual feeling. Our results contribute to the new area of research on academic community's coping with pandemic-related stress and challenges.

Living through a Global Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Resilience of the University Population in Iran

“…Some studies conducted research on psychological resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 12 , 13 ]. During the first wave of COVID-19, a U.S. study showed that psychological resilience was significantly lower when compared to earlier normative data, as measured by the CD-RISC scale [ 14 ].…”

Coping Methods and Satisfaction with Working from Home in Academic Settings during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…University faculty/staff and students were among the groups affected by working from home. Working from home changed the working environment for many employees, presenting both challenges and opportunities for work life [2]. People in academic settings faced a new reality with the closure of campus-based in person activities, and the shift of teaching to different online platforms [3,4].…”

“…Additionally, meaning-making coping has had an important place in academics' effort to cope with COVID-19. Using nature as a coping resource and considering life as integrated to a greater whole are significant for coping with COVID-19 among the academics, and in other traumatic situations [2,21]. Additionally, religious coping methods have been used, especially in the context of Muslim academics [22,23].…”