Anxiety, Stress Perception, and Coping Strategies among Students with COVID-19 Exposure

• Published in: Journal of clinical medicine Vol. 12; no. 13; p. 4404
• Main Authors: Shpakou, Andrei, Krajewska-Kułak, Elżbieta, Cybulski, Mateusz, Sokołowska, Dorota, Andryszczyk, Małgorzata, Kleszczewska, Ewa, Loginovich, Yelena, Owoc, Jakub, Tarasov, Andrei, Skoblina, Natalia, Kowalczuk, Krystyna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 30.06.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Anxiety; Clinical medicine; College students; Coping; Coping (Psychology); Coronaviruses; COVID-19 vaccines; Demographic aspects; Disease transmission; Gender; Health aspects; Immunization; Infections; Mental disorders; Mental health; Pandemics; Perceptions; Post traumatic stress disorder; Psychological aspects; Public health; Questionnaires; Risk factors; Stress (Psychology); Students; Young adults; Poland; Lithuania; Russia; Belarus; Ukraine; university students; COVID-19 patients; coping strategies; anxiety stress perception; Poland; Russian exclave of Kaliningrad; Lithuania; pandemic
• ISSN: 2077-0383; 2077-0383
• DOI: 10.3390/jcm12134404

: Studying anxiety, stress, and coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic is crucial to mitigate the negative effects associated with infection risk and disease consequences. : This study aimed to investigate anxiety levels, stress perception, and coping strategies in relation to the presence of illness. : A cross-sectional online survey was conducted anonymously among 3950 university students from Poland (1822), Lithuania (232), and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad (1896). Due to the nearly identical application of anti-epidemic measures, the respondents were treated as a unified group. The State-trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Perceived Stress Scale 10 (PSS-10), and mini-COPE scale questionnaires were used. Statistical analysis included the Shapiro-Wilk test to check normality, the Mann-Whitney U test for comparative analysis between groups, the Pearson χ test for categorical data, and Spearman coefficients for correlations between variables. : A significant proportion of young adults in the community exhibited symptoms of anxiety and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the 1212 men and 2738 women surveyed, 348 (28.7%) and 1020 (37.3%) individuals, respectively, were diagnosed with COVID-19 according to clinical protocols. Prolonged disease duration and more severe residual symptoms correlated with higher self-reported anxiety levels. : The level of anxiety and stress varied depending on the duration of the disease, significantly impacting the choice of coping strategies. Overall, students displayed a proactive approach to coping activities but tended to postpone important decisions. Seeking social support was a prevalent coping mechanism, although respondents who had COVID-19 showed higher levels of concern for their own emotions, a tendency to discharge emotions through alcohol or other substances (male), and a greater reliance on religion (female). The study provides data that may be useful in developing educational and health policies focused on the mental well-being of university students and potentially other social groups.