Suicidal Ideation during the COVID-19 Pandemic among A Large-Scale Iranian Sample: The Roles of Generalized Trust, Insomnia, and Fear of COVID-19

Abstract

The novel 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is still not under control globally. The pandemic has caused mental health issues among many different cohorts and suicidal ideation in relation to COVID-19 has been reported in a number of recent studies. Therefore, the present study proposed a model to explain the associations between generalized trust, fear of COVID-19, insomnia, and suicidal ideation during the COVID-19 pandemic among a large-scale Iranian sample. Utilizing cluster sampling with multistage stratification, residents from Qazvin province in Iran were invited to participate in the present study. Adults aged over 18 years (n = 10,843; 6751 [62.3%] females) completed ‘paper–and-pencil’ questionnaires with the assistance of a trained research assistant. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to understand the associations between generalized trust, fear of COVID-19, insomnia, and suicidal ideation. Slightly over one-fifth of the participants (n = 2252; 20.8%) reported suicidal ideation. Moreover, the SEM results indicated that generalized trust was indirectly associated with suicidal ideation via fear of COVID-19 and insomnia. Furthermore, generalized trust was not directly associated with suicidal ideation. The proposed model was invariant across gender groups, age groups, and participants residing in different areas (i.e., urban vs. rural). Generalized trust might reduce individuals’ suicidal ideation during the COVID-19 pandemic period via reduced levels of fear of COVID-19 and insomnia. Healthcare providers and policymakers may want to assist individuals in developing their generalized trust, reducing fear of COVID-19, and improving insomnia problems to avoid possible suicidal behaviors.

Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review

“…HCWs have been repeatedly exposed to death and pain during the COVID-19 pandemic ( 67 ), and as postulated by Smith and Cukrowicz ( 68 ), constant exposure to pain and death may favor suicidal behavior and ideation. This may suggest that work environments where there is a higher risk of infection may favor a worsening of the mental health of particularly exposed HCWs ( 69 ). In this case, there is certain controversy as to the higher or lower prevalence of suicide rates among frontline HCWs compared to other types of workers.…”

With or without the Mask: Age Differences in Perceived Trustworthiness and Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Recent studies have examined the relationship between decreased trust and increased fear within the COVID-19 context [ 41 , 42 ]. Other studies have suggested increased perceived trustworthiness when people wear a face mask [ 43 ].…”

The Associations between Sibling Victimization, Sibling Bullying, Parental Acceptance–Rejection, and School Bullying

“…SEM was evaluated using several goodness-of-fit indices. More specifically, the model fit was evaluated using fit indices of nonsignificant χ2, comparative fit index (CFI) > 0.90, together with standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) < 0.08 [ 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 ]. Furthermore, maximal and composite reliability were used to estimate the model’s validity.…”