Evidence of the psychological effects of pseudoscientific information about COVID-19 on rural and urban populations

Escolà‐Gascón, Álex; Marín, Francesc-Xavier; Rusiñol, Jordi; Gallifa, Josep

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113628

Cited by 16 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 44 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In addition, from the perspective of urban spatial pattern and urban form, the urban spatial agglomeration, polarization of urban spatial pattern, and the concept of centralized urban spatial planning is the objective conditions for the spread of the epidemic and the aggravation of its impact ( Pan, 2020 ). If people lived in urban city during the COVID-19 pandemic, they will become more prone to emotional issues, mood swings and depression ( Escola-Gascon et al., 2021 ). So physical and psychological health of urban residents are more worthy of our attention.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The structural characteristics and influential factors of psychological stress of urban residents in Jiangxi province during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross sectional study

Huang¹,

Zhang²,

Wang³

et al. 2021

Heliyon

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Aims To explore the structural characteristics and influential factors of psychological stress of urban residents in Jiangxi province during the COVID-19 pandemic through a survey of psychological stress, personality traits, family function and life satisfaction. Methods By the convenient sampling, 1422 urban residents from Jiangxi province were assessed with Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Short Scale (EPQ-RSC), Psychological Questionnaires for Emergent Events of Public Health (PQEEPH), Family APGAR Scale (APGAR) and Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). The relation among personality traits, psychological stress, family function and life satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic was analyzed by using the canonical correlation analysis and the serial mediation model. Results (1) Among the estimated correlation coefficients, the first two pairs were significant ( P < 0.001 in each). (2) In the first pair of canonical variables, the loadings of neuroticism and neurasthenia were the higher (0.94, 0.70). (3) Neuroticism and life satisfaction mediated the relationship between family function and neurasthenia ( β neuroticism = -0.174; 95%CI:-0.224, -0.134; β life satisfaction = -0.034, 95%CI:-0.012, -0.062), respectively. In addition, serial mediation analyses indicated that the association of family function and neurasthenia is mediated by neuroticism and life satisfaction in a sequential manner ( β = -0.010; 95%CI:-0.020, -0.004). Conclusions During the COVID-19 pandemic, neuroticism was closely related to psychological stress of urban residents, especially neurasthenia. In addition, the serial mediating effect of neuroticism and life satisfaction played an important role in the process of family function influencing neurasthenia. These findings contributed to a more comprehensive understanding of the influential factors for psychological stress of urban residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The structural characteristics and influential factors of psychological stress of urban residents in Jiangxi province during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross sectional study

Huang¹,

Zhang²,

Wang³

et al. 2021

Heliyon

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Among the most popular "explanatory" theories can be cited: the pandemic has been planned by Big Pharma, companies, the virus is produced in laboratory, 5 G produce clinical signs of Covid-19 infection. There are several reasons which might explain the development of pseudoscientific information: subjective misinterpretation of some evidence, called cognitive biases, magical or irrational meanings, a hidden mercantile interest and the credible, persuasion reaching the fragile emotional ground of the receptor [19].…”

Section: Infodemia Versus Scientific Informationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychiatric Services and Teaching during the Covid-19 Pandemic in Romania

Miclutia¹

2021

Anxiety, Uncertainty, and Resilience During the Pandemic Period - Anthropological and Psychological Perspectives

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Covid-19 pandemic has been declared in Romania on the 16th March 2020.The medical system reacted promptly: chronic patients had to be discharged within 48 h and further scheduled admittances were postponed, adequate epidemiological measures and circuits were organized. Anxiety, insomnia, frustration, binge eating, domestic violence were reported. The majority respected the general advises but soon, persons selected their information sources rather from social media, being victims of the infodemia and peculiar conspirationist theories. A new disorder has been described: coronaphobia. The psychiatric hospitals and outpatient settings had to reduce or innactivate their activity, switch as much as possible to TelePsychiatry. Psychiatry admittances were: onsets of psychosis, relapses of schizophrenia and alcohol, other psychoactive substances abuses, intoxications, and withdrawal states. Later, there were depressions, bipolar disorders, suicide attempts, self-harm in borderline disorder, dementia and delirium. Due to the closure of outpatient units for several months, patients visited the Emergency rooms. Personnel experienced burnout and new psychiatric pathology developed in the aftermath of Covid-19 infection. A big relief occurred with the initial vaccination of the medical staff and seniors, chronically ill persons, psychiatric patients being again left behind. Medical teaching shifted entirely to online and in 2021 the hybrid teaching system has been employed.

show abstract

“…An analysis of their reliability showed that 10% are disinformation [3]. Escola-Gascón, Marín, Rusiñol, & Gallifa (2021) found that the ability to distinguish scientific information from pseudoscientific information predicts from 20 to 32% of psychological well-being, and according to the results of the study, residents of large cities find it more difficult to navigate the veracity of information, than rural residents, which is probably due to its redundancy in a large city as opposed to a rural area [4]. The negative impact of excess information was also confirmed in a study by Zhang, Zhang, Xiao, & Zheng (2021), who found that an abundance of information on social networks and a low level of its quality increased respondents' fatigue [5].…”

Section: Alarmism and Panic In The Information Field The So-called "Infodemy"mentioning

confidence: 99%

Consequences of information covering the COVID-19 pandemic from the point of view of Terror Management Theory

Dmitrieva

2021

E3S Web Conf.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The article is devoted to the description and explanation of individual psychological and social phenomena from the point of view of actualizing thanatic issues during the COVID-19 pandemic and its information coverage. The relevance of the study is due to the situation of the spread of coronavirus infection, the peculiarities of combating its spread, the influence of information technologies on this process and the need to understand the phenomena that have developed in society. The novelty of the research lies in the complex consideration of various social and individual psychological phenomena from the standpoint of the influence of the vital threat and existential fears on the individual and social consciousness. The article contains information on the socio-psychological phenomena that manifested themselves during the COVID-19 pandemic (alarmism, infodemic, intergroup tensions, stigmatization of certain groups of the population, a shift in political preferences, aggravation or emergence of mental disorders, inadequate purchasing activity) and describes them in terms of Terror Management Theory. In the conclusion, prospects are given for using the provisions of Terror Management Theory to develop a strategy for overcoming a pandemic situation, taking into account the action of proximal and distal defenses. The author comes to the conclusion that the features of the information coverage of the situation have a strong influence on its further development, in connection with which it is necessary to develop a clear plan for the preparation of official information that meets the criteria of completeness, credibility, scientific character and conveys the idea of positive realism.

show abstract

Evidence of the psychological effects of pseudoscientific information about COVID-19 on rural and urban populations

Cited by 16 publications

References 44 publications

The structural characteristics and influential factors of psychological stress of urban residents in Jiangxi province during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross sectional study

The structural characteristics and influential factors of psychological stress of urban residents in Jiangxi province during the COVID-19 pandemic: cross sectional study

Psychiatric Services and Teaching during the Covid-19 Pandemic in Romania

Consequences of information covering the COVID-19 pandemic from the point of view of Terror Management Theory

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About