Supplemental Material for COVID-19, Social Isolation, and Psychological Distress in a Brazilian Sample

The social isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic exerts lasing impacts on people’s mental health. However, whether and how people’s pre-existing positive social relationships can serve as stable reserves to alleviate people psychological distress following the disaster remains unknown. To address the question, the current study examined whether pre-pandemic relationship satisfaction would predict post-pandemic COVID-19 anxiety through middle-pandemic perceived social support and/or gratitude using four-wave data in China (N = 222, 54.50% female, Mage = 31.53, SD = 8.17). Results showed that people’s COVID-19 anxiety decreased from the peak to the trough pandemic stage; perceived social support increased markedly from the pre-pandemic to the peak and remained stable afterwards, while relationship satisfaction remained unchanged throughout. Further, it was middle-pandemic perceived social support, but not gratitude, mediated the association between pre-pandemic relationship satisfaction and post-pandemic COVID-19 anxiety, indicating perceived social support played a more crucial role than gratitude in this process. Last, it is suggested to distinguish perceived social support from gratitude as two different components of social interactions.

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Solitary confinement and institutional harm

Incarceration ◽

10.1177/26326663211065644 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 263266632110656

Author(s):

Bruce Western ◽

Jessica T. Simes ◽

Kendra Bradner

Keyword(s):

Psychological Distress ◽

Social Isolation ◽

Qualitative Interviews ◽

Empirical Support ◽

Longitudinal Survey ◽

Material Deprivation ◽

Solitary Confinement ◽

Three Dimensions ◽

Legal Arguments

In a given year, one in five people incarcerated in the U.S. prisons is locked in solitary confinement. We study solitary confinement along three dimensions of penal harm: (1) material deprivation, (2) social isolation, and (3) psychological distress. Data from a longitudinal survey of incarcerated men who are interviewed at baseline in solitary confinement are used to contrast the most extreme form of penal custody with general prison conditions observed at a follow-up interview. Solitary confinement is associated with extreme material deprivation and social isolation that accompanies psychological distress. Distress is greatest for those with histories of mental illness. Inactivity and feelings of dehumanization revealed in qualitative interviews help explain the distress of extreme isolation, lending empirical support to legal arguments that solitary confinement threatens human dignity.

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Workplace Stress, Presenteeism, Absenteeism, and Resilience Amongst University Staff and Students in the COVID-19 Lockdown

Frontiers in Psychiatry ◽

10.3389/fpsyt.2020.588803 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

Author(s):

Christina Maria Van Der Feltz-Cornelis ◽

D. Varley ◽

Victoria L. Allgar ◽

Edwin de Beurs

Keyword(s):

Psychological Distress ◽

Social Isolation ◽

Online Survey ◽

Health Anxiety ◽

High Stress ◽

Female Gender ◽

Workplace Stress ◽

University Staff ◽

Stress Levels ◽

The Impact

Background: This study explored how the COVID-19 outbreak and arrangements such as remote working and furlough affect work or study stress levels and functioning in staff and students at the University of York, UK.Methods: An invitation to participate in an online survey was sent to all University of York staff and students in May-June 2020. We measured stress levels [VAS-scale, Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ)], mental health [anxiety (GAD-7), depression (PHQ-9)], physical health (PHQ-15, chronic medical conditions checklist), presenteeism, and absenteeism levels (iPCQ). We explored demographic and other characteristics as factors which may contribute to resilience and vulnerability for the impact of COVID-19 on stress.Results: One thousand and fifty five staff and nine hundred and twenty five students completed the survey. Ninety-eight per cent of staff and seventy-eight per cent of students worked or studied remotely. 7% of staff and 10% of students reported sickness absence. 26% of staff and 40% of the students experienced presenteeism. 22–24% of staff reported clinical-level anxiety and depression scores, and 37.2 and 46.5% of students. Staff experienced high stress levels due to COVID-19 (66.2%, labeled vulnerable) and 33.8% experienced low stress levels (labeled resilient). Students were 71.7% resilient vs. 28.3% non-resilient. Predictors of vulnerability in staff were having children [OR = 2.23; CI (95) = 1.63–3.04] and social isolation [OR = 1.97; CI (95) = 1.39–2.79] and in students, being female [OR = 1.62; CI (95) = 1.14–2.28], having children [OR = 2.04; CI (95) = 1.11–3.72], and social isolation [OR = 1.78; CI (95) = 1.25–2.52]. Resilience was predicted by exercise in staff [OR = 0.83; CI (95) = 0.73–0.94] and in students [OR = 0.85; CI (95) = 0.75–0.97].Discussion: University staff and students reported high psychological distress, presenteeism and absenteeism. However, 33.8% of staff and 71.7% of the students were resilient. Amongst others, female gender, having children, and having to self-isolate contributed to vulnerability. Exercise contributed to resilience.Conclusion: Resilience occurred much more often in students than in staff, although psychological distress was much higher in students. This suggests that predictors of resilience may differ from psychological distress per se. Hence, interventions to improve resilience should not only address psychological distress but may also address other factors.

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Time-Dependent Effects of Exposure to Nature and Perceived Behavioral Control over Social Distancing in Shared Open Spaces on Psychological Distress of Residents during Pandemic of COVID-19

10.21203/rs.3.rs-1035834/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Seyyedeh Fatemeh Mousavinia

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Psychological Distress ◽

Social Isolation ◽

Behavioral Control ◽

The Body ◽

Time Dependent ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Perceived Behavioral Control ◽

Social Distancing ◽

Positive Effects

Abstract Background: Further research into the influence of the COVID-19 epidemic on mental health is needed. Some research has highlighted the positive effects of nature exposure on mental health, as well as the importance of subjective assessments of green spaces. Methods: Considering both private and semi-public environments, the current longitudinal study examines the moderating effects of exposure to nature and perceived behavioral control over social distancing on the relationship between perceived interior crowding, social isolation, and psychological distress. Finally, it investigates whether these connections change through time. During the Iranian national lockdowns, data from 718 middle-aged women who completed an online questionnaire survey in two waves were used. Results and Conclusion: The findings of structural equation modeling back up the idea that social isolation plays a key role in the association between perceived interior crowding and psychological distress. Multi-Group Analysis revealed that exposure to nature reduced the negative effects of perceived interior crowding on psychological distress, as predicted. Nevertheless, this relationship is time-dependent and nature exposure during the time did not necessarily assist in reducing negative impacts. The current research adds to the body of knowledge by identifying perceived behavioral control as a buffer against the adverse effects of social isolation on psychological distress over time. These findings provide for a better understanding of psychological processes and could help in the promotion of design policies in the event of a pandemic.

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The role of equanimity in mediating the relationship between psychological distress and social isolation during COVID-19

Journal of Affective Disorders ◽

10.1016/j.jad.2021.09.087 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 296 ◽

pp. 370-379

Author(s):

Lisa M. Mann ◽

Benjamin R. Walker

Keyword(s):

Psychological Distress ◽

Social Isolation ◽

The Relationship

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“Furry tales”: pet ownership’s influence on subjective well-being during Covid-19 times

Quality & Quantity ◽

10.1007/s11135-021-01303-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Svenja Damberg ◽

Lena Frömbling

Keyword(s):

Psychological Distress ◽

Social Isolation ◽

Psychological Health ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Well Being ◽

Path Model ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Social Distancing ◽

Need Support

AbstractThe social distancing required during Covid-19 times tended to make people feel lonelier than usual. Those with pets might, however, have experienced this less, because pets are known for fostering their owners’ subjective well-being. Building on a recently published structural equation model, our study enhances the understanding of subjective well-being by including the construct social distancing during Covid-19 times. In order to answer our research question—How does human-pet relationship need support influence subjective well-being by considering social isolation during Covid-19 times?—we build on the basic needs theory, assuming that humans as well as their pets have an inherent need of autonomy, relatedness, and competence. Using a multivariate data analysis method, namely partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), we establish a path model and examine the relationship between human-pet relationship need support and subjective well-being by including psychological distress and social isolation during Covid-19 times as mediators. We operationalize subjective well-being as a three-dimensional construct consisting of positive affect, happiness, and life satisfaction. In a sample of 215 pet owners in the USA, supporting their need increases subjective well-being, and decreases the psychological distress and loneliness caused by social isolation during Covid-19 times. Furthermore, psychological distress decreases subjective well-being, whereas perceived loneliness during Covid-19 times does not. Our main contributions are to not only enhance our knowledge on the importance of human-pet relationships in critical times, but also to provide policy makers with insights into what influences people’s subjective well-being, which is closely related to their psychological health.

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Social Isolation, Resilience, and Psychological Well-Being in Older Chinese Americans

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igab046.1135 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 294-294

Author(s):

Wei Zhang ◽

Katherine Wang ◽

Yaolin Pei ◽

Bei Wu ◽

Xiang Qi

Keyword(s):

Life Satisfaction ◽

Psychological Distress ◽

Social Isolation ◽

Living Arrangement ◽

Chinese Americans ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Well Being ◽

Older Chinese ◽

Using Data ◽

Older Chinese Americans

Abstract Using data collected in 2018 on 398 older Chinese Americans aged 55+ residing in Hawaii, we examined the associations of social isolation with psychological well-being and the mediating role of resilience. Social isolation was measured by their marital status, living arrangement, contact with children/family/friends, and participation in social activities. Psychological well-being was measured by psychological distress, life satisfaction, and happiness. Results from multivariate linear regressions and ordered logistic regressions showed social isolation was positively associated with psychological distress (β=0.017, p<0.05), and negatively associated with life satisfaction (β=-0.220, p<0.001) and happiness (β=-0.086, p<0.05) . By contrast, resilience was associated with lower psychological distress and higher life satisfaction and happiness. Moreover, mediation analysis showed that resilience contributed to 32% of the association between social isolation and psychological distress, 24.9% of the association between social isolation and life satisfaction, and 16.3% of the association between social isolation and happiness.

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