Mental Health Status of University Students and Working Professionals during the Early Stage of COVID-19 in Bangladesh

Abstract

A novel coronavirus disease known as COVID-19 has spread globally and brought a public health emergency to all nations. To respond to the pandemic, the Bangladesh Government imposed a nationwide lockdown that may have degraded mental health among residents, in particular, university students and working professionals. We examined clinically significant anxiety levels with the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) scale and perceived stress levels with the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4) in an online cross-sectional study with 744 adults. Approximately 70% of respondents were afflicted with clinically significant anxiety levels, and more than 43.82% were afflicted with moderate or high perceived stress levels. Multivariate logistic regression models showed that postgraduates (OR = 2.78, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03–8.75, p < 0.05) were more likely to experience anxiety than their student counterparts. No such differences emerged for working professionals, however. Living with family members compared to living alone was a risk factor for perceived stress among working professionals (OR = 4.05, 95% CI = 1.45–11.32, p < 0.05). COVID-19 stressors such as financial hardship (OR = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.11–3.05, p < 0.05) and worries of family members’ health (OR = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.12–2.99) were risk factors for anxiety among students. Questionable social media news exposure (OR = 2.99, 95% CI = 1.13–7.92, p < 0.05) contributed to the development of mental stress among working professionals. These findings confirm that effective initiatives and proactive efforts from concerned authorities are necessary to cope with the mental health correlates of the COVID-19 pandemic, including in developing contexts such as Bangladesh.

The influence of anxiety and fear of COVID-19 on vaccination hesitancy among postsecondary students

“…For example, history of anxiety and/or depressive disorder 41 , governmental measurements aimed at reducing the spread of COVID-19, change in studying format (i.e. forced distant online learning) 42 , worries relating to the health of their family members 43 and worry about social support 44 have been linked to increased levels of anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic among postsecondary students.…”

Nature exposure and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A Navigation Guide systematic review with meta-analysis

“…Many studies have documented the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health (Banerjee, 2020;Patwary et al, 2022;Rossi et al, 2020;Talevi et al, 2020). Symptoms of depression, anxiety, and psychological disorder became more prevalent due to COVID-19-related structural actions such as lockdowns (Chatterjee et al, 2020).…”

The Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Postsecondary Students: An Analysis of Self-Determination

“…Since January 2020, there have been over 6,200,000 reported deaths globally [ 2 ]. Although this pandemic has had catastrophic effects on the physical health of millions of individuals, the psychological impact of the virus has also proven detrimental [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]. The full psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be investigated; however, research has shown that postsecondary students are a population that is highly susceptible to psychological distress [ 3 , 7 , 8 , 9 ].…”

“…Although this pandemic has had catastrophic effects on the physical health of millions of individuals, the psychological impact of the virus has also proven detrimental [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]. The full psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be investigated; however, research has shown that postsecondary students are a population that is highly susceptible to psychological distress [ 3 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]. Young adults between 18 and 24 years of age, the most common age group for postsecondary students, reported the highest levels of pandemic-related psychological distress when compared to other age groups, with a quarter of them reporting suicidal thoughts [ 10 , 11 ].…”