The Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Teenagers in China

The 2019 COVID-19 pandemic poses a challenge to adolescent psychological health. The aim of this study was to survey junior high and high school students in China to better understand the psychological consequences, such as anxiety, depression, and stress, of the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of adolescent health Vol. 67; no. 6; pp. 747 - 755
Main Authors: Zhang, Caiyun, Ye, Maolin, Fu, Yunwei, Yang, Minyi, Luo, Fen, Yuan, Jinhua, Tao, Qian
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.12.2020
Elsevier BV
Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine
Subjects:
Adaptation, Psychological
Adolescent
Adolescent Health
Adolescents
Anxiety
Anxiety - psychology
Children & youth
China
Coping
Coping style
COVID-19
Cross-Sectional Studies
Depression
Depression - psychology
Female
Health status
Humans
Learning outcomes
Male
Mental depression
Mental Health
Middle school students
Middle schools
Original
Pandemic
Pandemics
Polls & surveys
Protective factors
Psychological distress
Psychological trauma
Psychological well being
Questionnaires
Resilience
Resilience (Psychology)
Risk factors
SARS-CoV-2 - isolation & purification
Schools
Secondary school students
Stress
Stress, Psychological - psychology
Students
Students - statistics & numerical data
Surveys and Questionnaires
Symptoms
Teenagers
Trauma
Trauma-related distress
China
Depression
Pandemic
Anxiety
Stress
Trauma-related distress
ISSN:1054-139X, 1879-1972, 1879-1972
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The 2019 COVID-19 pandemic poses a challenge to adolescent psychological health. The aim of this study was to survey junior high and high school students in China to better understand the psychological consequences, such as anxiety, depression, and stress, of the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional online survey using structural questionnaires was conducted from April 7, 2020, to April 24, 2020. Demographic information and general information related to the pandemic were collected. Psychological consequences were assessed by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale. Influencing factors were assessed by the Brief Resilience Scale and Coping Style Questionnaire. Our sample comprised 493 junior high school students (male = 239, mean age = 13.93 years) and 532 high school students (male = 289, mean age = 17.08 years). Resilience and positive coping were protective factors for the occurrence of depressive, anxiety, and stress symptoms in junior high and high school students (p < .05). Positive coping was a protective factor for trauma-related distress in junior high school students (p < .05). Negative coping is a risk factor for depression, anxiety, stress symptoms, and trauma-related distress in junior high and high school students (p < .05). During the COVID-19 pandemic in China, more than one fifth of junior high and high school students' mental health was affected. Our findings suggested that resilience and positive coping lead to better psychological and mental health status among students. In contrast, negative coping is a risk factor for mental health.
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These authors contributed equally to the study.
ISSN:1054-139X
1879-1972
1879-1972
DOI:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.08.026