Using Fear and Anxiety Related to COVID-19 to Predict Cyberchondria: Cross-sectional Survey Study

Abstract

Background Studies have highlighted that fear and anxiety generated by COVID-19 are important psychological factors that affect all populations. There currently remains a lack of research on specific amplification factors regarding fear and anxiety in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite established associations between anxiety sensitivity, intolerance of uncertainty, and cyberchondria, empirical data investigating the associations between these three variables, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, are currently lacking. Urgent research is needed to better understand the role of repeated media consumption concerning COVID-19 in amplifying fear and anxiety related to COVID-19. Objective This study investigated the associations between fear of COVID-19, COVID-19 anxiety, and cyberchondria. Methods Convenience sampling was used to recruit respondents to participate in an online survey. The survey, which was distributed via social media and academic forums, comprised the Cyberchondria Severity Scale, Fear of COVID-19 Scale, Coronavirus Anxiety Scale, Anxiety Sensitivity Index, and Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale. Multiple mediation analyses were conducted using structural equation modeling. Results A total of 694 respondents (males: n=343, females: n=351) completed the online survey. The results showed that fear and anxiety generated by COVID-19 predicted cyberchondria (fear: β=.39, SE 0.04, P<.001, t=11.16, 95% CI 0.31-0.45; anxiety: β=.25, SE 0.03, P<.001, t=7.67, 95% CI 0.19-0.32). In addition, intolerance of uncertainty and anxiety sensitivity mediated the relationship between fear and anxiety generated by COVID-19 with cyberchondria. In a reciprocal model, the standardized total effects of cyberchondria on fear of COVID-19 (β=.45, SE 0.04, P<.001, t=15.31, 95% CI 0.39-0.51) and COVID-19 anxiety (β=.36, SE 0.03, P<.001, t=11.29, 95% CI 0.30-0.41) were statistically significant, with moderate effect sizes. Compared to males, females obtained significantly higher scores for cyberchondria (t1,692=–2.85, P=.004, Cohen d=0.22), COVID-19 anxiety (t1,692=–3.32, P<.001, Cohen d=0.26), and anxiety sensitivity (t1,692=–3.69, P<.001, Cohen d=0.29). Conclusions The findings provide a better understanding of the role of COVID-19 in amplifying cyberchondria. Based on these results, cyberchondria must be viewed as a significant public health issue. Importantly, increasing awareness about cyberchondria and online behavior at both the individual and collective levels must be prioritized to enhance preparedness and to reduce the adverse effects of current and future medical crises.

Psychometric Validation of the Indonesian Version of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale: Personality Traits Predict the Fear of COVID-19

“…Neuroticism is a key trait associated with most emotional disorders (Brown & Barlow, 2009;Norton & Paulus, 2017). Other associated factors include anxiety sensitivity, worry, and emotional dysregulation (MacNamara et al, 2015), and have frequently been reported during the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g., Mertens et al, 2020;Restubog et al, 2020;Wu et al, 2021). These factors can be important in increasing or maintaining persistent negative emotions and may affect physical and psychological functioning (Sauer-Zavala et al, 2020).…”

Interoceptive anxiety-related processes: Importance for understanding COVID-19 and future pandemic mental health and addictive behaviors and their comorbidity

“…For example, among 284 young adults in Iran, COVID-19 worry was related to depressive symptoms directly and through resilience and meaning in life ( Yıldırım, Arslan, & Aziz, 2020 ). Similarly, Wu, Nazari, and Griffiths (2021) also found a significant cross-sectional mediational effect for global anxiety sensitivity and intolerance of uncertainty on the independent relations between COVID-19 fear and COVID-19 anxiety with cyberchondria (i.e., anxiety resulting from a health-related search online; Starcevic & Berle, 2013 ; Starcevic & Berle, 2015 ) among 649 adults in Iran. Akbari, Spada, Nikčević, and Zamani (2021) reported that among a sample of adults in Tehran ( n = 541) who had family members infected with COVID-19, cross-sectional analysis revealed several individual risk vulnerabilities, including facets of metacognitions (e.g., positive beliefs about worry, negative beliefs about thoughts concerning uncontrollability and danger, cognitive confidence, and beliefs about the need to control thoughts), intolerance of uncertainty, and expressive suppression (a facet of emotion regulation), mediated the relationship between COVID-19 fear and health anxiety.…”

Relationships between fear of COVID‐19, cyberchondria, intolerance of uncertainty, and obsessional probabilistic inferences: A structural equation model

“…Another investigation by Wu et al . ( 2021 ) in a sample of community participants showed that COVID‐19‐related fear and anxiety significantly contributed to cyberchondria as well as indirectly through intolerance of uncertainty. On the other hand, in a two‐wave longitudinal investigation suggested that safety behaviors concerned with COVID‐19 infection were induced by cyberchondria (Jokic‐Begic et al ., 2020 ).…”

“…To date, the emerged evidence is that significant relationship between fear of COVID‐19 and cyberchondria has been established in several studies (Durmuş, Deniz, Akbolat & Çimen, 2022 ; Jungmann & Witthöft, 2020 ; Wu, Nazari & Griffiths, 2021 ). Laato, Islam, Islam, and Whelan ( 2020 ) identified that perceived severity and perceived susceptibility of COVID‐19 infection significantly contributed to cyberchondria after controlling for age and gender.…”