How portuguese people deal with COVID-19 pandemic? Immediate impact of lockdown

• Published in: Psicologia, Saúde & Doenças Vol. 21; no. 3; pp. 558 - 570
• Main Authors: Pombo, Samuel, Pestana, Pedro Câmara, Marinho, Ângelo, Novais, Filipa
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Portuguese
• Published: Sociedade Portuguesa de Psicologia da Saúde 01.12.2020
• Subjects: PSYCHOLOGY, APPLIED; COVID-19; pandemia; saúde pública; saúde mental; mental Health; pandemics; public health
• ISSN: 1645-0086
• DOI: 10.15309/20psd210302

Abstract Social confinement due to the Covid-19 pandemic lead to inevitable changes in everyday life which may have an impact on people´s psychological wellbeing. This work aimed to evaluate these potential effects on the Portuguese population. Immediate emotional and occupational impacts as well as changes in key health-related behaviors were evaluated with a brief self-report survey in 1819 respondents. Several changes in daily habits, family functioning, and psychological well-being were observed. There were significant differences regarding gender and type of household, even after controlling for confounders. Parents living with their children report a significantly higher negative impact on their lives in this period of domestic confinement. There were also statistically significant results when assessing occupational status and psychiatric history. Health care professionals and persons with current mental health assistance also reported more negative consequences. There seems to be a balance between losses and improvements in quality of family life, behavioral and emotional well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic for the majority of the studied population. However, some subgroups may be particularly affected, namely women, health care professionals, couples with children at home, and individuals with current mental health assistance. Further studies are needed to assess the potential impact of long-term confinement.