The immediate psychological response of the general population in Saudi Arabia during COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background The outbreak of COVID-19 may differentially exacerbate anxiety and stress in people subjected to the real or perceived threat of the virus. Method An online cross-sectional survey was carried out to assess the general population’s psychological response during the initial state of the outbreak in Saudi Arabia. The study used brief screening tools PHQ-4 for anxiety-depression symptoms and IES-6 for posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. Results Among the 584 respondents, 19.8% and 22.0% reported moderate to severe anxiety and depression symptoms respectively. According to the combined PHQ-4 score, 14.5% of participants showed moderate to severe anxiety or depression disorder. Overall, 64.8% met the level of clinical concern for posttraumatic stress disorder and 51.3% met the level of probable posttraumatic stress disorder diagnosis. Multivariate analyses showed that females, non-Saudi nationalities, and those who had a history of mental illness were more vulnerable to anxiety and depression disorders than their counterparts, whereas a higher prevalence of distress symptoms was reported among those who prefer Arabic over English for communication. It was found that people whose colleagues or family infected with the disease were more likely to report moderate to severe symptoms of anxiety or depression and distress. The study further showed that the higher the perceived threat, the higher the chances of exhibiting anxiety-depressive disorder symptoms and distress symptoms. Conclusion The findings might be a matter for serious concern, and considerable attention is required from authorities and policymakers regarding early detection and treatment of these illnesses in order to reduce the burden of the pandemic related mental illness.

Parental psychological distress and attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccination: A cross-sectional survey in Shenzhen, China

“…Nearly one year passed since the onset of COVID-19, the prevalence of psychological distress among parents in our study was 21.2%, in which only 3.3% were moderate to severe symptom. Using the cut-off point of 6 in PHQ-4, our result was greatly lower than the prevalence of moderate to severe symptom in Germany and Austria (19.0%) ( Schnell and Krampe, 2020 ), America (11.2%-11.3%) ( Kämpfen et al, 2020 ; Pan et al, 2021 ), and Saudi Arabia (14.5%) ( Joseph et al, 2021 ). In addition to the disparities of the cultural, social, and economic backgrounds, the environment people live may also play an essential role in stabilizing their emotions.…”

Mediating Effect of Chronic Illnesses in the Relationship Between Psychological Distress and COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance

“…Furthermore, the current study highlighted that about 14.4% of participants reported moderate to severe symptoms. This prevalence rate was comparable with the rate reported in Germany and Austria 21 (19%), America 22 (11.2%), and Saudi Arabia 23 (14.5%), but a much lower rate was recorded in China 10 (3.3%). The varying degrees of reported psychological distress across different countries are likely due to the demographic differences and cultural differences between the study populations.…”

The Economic and Psychological Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic on Indian Migrant Workers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

“…A sample study on psychological impact on the general population in the context of Saudi Arabia was carried out at the time of COVID-19 curfew and lockdown, and revealed that stress, anxiety, and depression were majorly found in medical workers, students, females, and persons with a mental disorder, and 1/4th of the sample population experienced moderate to serious psychological effects [ 24 , 25 ]. Another sample study for Saudi Arabia during the first wave of Corona virus disease stated that a marginal but substantial portion of the general population had found symptoms of anxiety and depression, and a majority of them reported symptoms of psychological distress [ 26 ]. The emotional wellbeing in any society is defined by measuring distress, depression, anxiety, and behavioral control among the people.…”