Anxiety, depression, and health anxiety in undergraduate students living in initial US outbreak "hotspot" during COVID-19 pandemic

Evidence of the psychological distress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, including depression, anxiety, and health anxiety, has been documented globally. College students are a unique sub-set of the population with consistently elevated psychological distress associated with the pandemic, and w...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cognitive behaviour therapy 2021-09, Vol.50 (5), p.409-421
Main Authors: Kibbey, Mindy M., Fedorenko, Erick J., Farris, Samantha G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anxiety
College students
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
illness anxiety
Mental depression
mental health
Pandemics
psychological distress
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Summary:Evidence of the psychological distress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, including depression, anxiety, and health anxiety, has been documented globally. College students are a unique sub-set of the population with consistently elevated psychological distress associated with the pandemic, and well-informed intervention is urgently needed. The current study is the first, to our knowledge, to document the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of undergraduates in a heavily impacted area in the United States. Cross-sectional, self-report data on psychological distress and COVID-19 exposure were collected from a racially and ethnically diverse sample of 641 undergraduates between April 7-9 May 2020. Nearly half of the students reported elevated psychological distress, including health anxiety, general anxiety, and depression. Heightened risk of psychological distress was associated with female sex, a COVID-19 case in one's immediate social network, underlying medical vulnerabilities, and recent experience of ≥3 viral symptoms. Vigilance to viral symptoms and worry about coronavirus were also factors associated with more severe psychological distress. The current study highlights some of the factors associated with a greater risk of developing psychological distress due to COVID-19 and can be used to inform the dissemination of psychological interventions.
ISSN:1650-6073
1651-2316
DOI:10.1080/16506073.2020.1853805