When Pandemic Interferes with Work: Psychological Capital and Mental Health of Social Workers during COVID-19

Insomnia and anxiety among COVID-19 patients in China: the chain mediating effect of psychological capital and self-esteem

BACKGROUND

The outbreak of Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) in 2019 has continued until now, posing a huge threat to the public's physical and mental health, resulting in different degrees of mental health problems. As a vulnerable segment of the public, anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems among COVID-19 patients. Excessive anxiety aggravates the physical and psychological symptoms of COVID-19 patients, which is detrimental to their treatment and recovery, increases financial expenditure, affects family relations, and adds to the medical burden.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to explore the role of psychological capital and self-esteem in the relationship between insomnia and anxiety, thereby shedding light on the mechanism of the effect of insomnia on anxiety in COVID-19 patients.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted from April to May 2022 in Fangcang hospital in Shanghai, China. The self-administered questionnaires were distributed to 718 COVID-19 patients via cell phone using the Internet platform "Questionnaire Star", which included Athens Insomnia Scale, Psychological Capital Questionnaire, Self-esteem Scale, Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, gender, age, marital status, education. Data analysis was performed using descriptive analysis, independent-samples t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson correlation analysis, ordinary least-squares regression, and bootstrap method.

RESULTS

Education background had significant impact on anxiety in COVID-19 patients (F = 7.70, P < 0.001). Insomnia, psychological capital, self-esteem and anxiety were significantly correlated, respectively (P < 0.001). And Regression analysis showed that insomnia had a direct negative predictive effect on psychological capital (β = -0.70, P < 0.001) and self-esteem (β = -0.13, P < 0.001). Psychological capital had a direct positive predictive effect on self-esteem (β = 0.12, P < 0.001). Insomnia had a direct positive predictive effect on anxiety (β = 0.61, P < 0.001). Both psychological capital and self-esteem had significant negative predictive effects on anxiety (β = -0.06, P < 0.05; β = -0.72, P < 0.001). The results showed that the mediating effect of psychological capital and self-esteem was significant, and the mediating effect value was 0.21. First, the indirect effect consisting of insomnia - psychological capital - anxiety was 0.04, showing that psychological capital had a significant mediating effect. Second, the indirect effect consisting of insomnia-self-esteem-anxiety had a value of 0.10, indicating that self-esteem had a significant mediating effect. Third, the indirect effect consisting of insomnia-psychological capital-self-esteem-anxiety had a value of 0.06, suggesting that psychological capital and self-esteem had a significant chain mediating effect between insomnia and anxiety.

CONCLUSIONS

Insomnia had a significant positive predictive effect on anxiety. Insomnia was first associated with a decrease in psychological capital, followed by a sequential decrease in self-esteem, which in turn was associated with increased anxiety symptoms in COVID-19 patients. Therefore, focusing on improving the psychological capital and self-esteem of patients can help alleviate the anxiety caused by insomnia in COVID-19 patients. It is recommended that patients and health care professionals increase the psychological capital and Self-esteem of COVID-19 patients through various methods to counter the effects of insomnia on anxiety.

Exploring Social Work Practitioners' Perspectives on the Contributors to Burnout since the COVID-19 Pandemic

Burnout has a historic and disproportionate impact on social workers and is one important contributor to the ongoing health and behavioral health workforce crisis in the United States. Little is known, however, about social workers' experiences of burnout and their perceptions of factors that contribute to burnout since the COVID-19 pandemic. This study sought to explore this by answering the following research questions: (a) To what extent are social workers in South Carolina experiencing burnout? and (b) What do South Carolina social workers view as the top reasons for burnout in their professional role? Seventy social work practitioners and leaders from South Carolina completed an online survey during Fall 2022 that included the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory and an open-ended question focused on identifying their perceptions of the top three reasons for burnout in the profession. Findings suggest that social workers in this study are experiencing moderate levels of burnout since the COVID-19 pandemic and report primarily organizational (83 percent) contributors to burnout. They also identified individual (36 percent), systemic (29 percent), and interpersonal (27 percent) contributors to burnout. Implications are discussed related to policy and practice responses to prevent and address burnout among social workers.

Stability and shifts in the combined positive and negative mental health of clergy: A longitudinal latent class and latent transition analysis study of united methodist pastors before and after the onset of COVID-19

COVID-19 and its associated restrictions presented unprecedented challenges for those in the helping professions. In this study, we seek to understand how the mental health of those who belong to one specific helping profession - clergy - changed in the context of COVID-19. Using longitudinal data of a sample of United Methodist pastors from the North Carolina Clergy Health Initiative, we conduct both cross-sectional and person-centered analyses to investigate how the overall mental health of this occupational group changed, as well as how different subgroups of clergy fared within the context of the pandemic, depending on their well-being prior to the onset of COVID-19. We found that the mental health of pastors suffered within the context of the pandemic, but that individual changes in mental health differed based on what the combined positive and negative mental health patterns of clergy were prior to the pandemic, for which we used latent class analysis to identify as Flourishing, Distressed, Languishing, or Burdened but Fulfilled. Of these subgroups, having Flourishing pre-pandemic status was protective of mental health following the onset of COVID-19, whereas the other three subgroups' mental health statuses worsened. This study is the one of the first longitudinal studies of helping professionals which has tracked changes in mental health before and after the onset of COVID-19. Our findings demonstrate the utility of considering positive and negative mental health indicators together, and they point to certain groups that can be targeted with well-being resources during future periods of acute or abnormal stress.

Daily routine disruptions and psychiatric symptoms amid COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of data from 0.9 million individuals in 32 countries

BACKGROUND

There is currently a deficit of knowledge about how to define, quantify, and measure different aspects of daily routine disruptions amid large-scale disasters like COVID-19, and which psychiatric symptoms were more related to the disruptions. This study aims to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis on the probable positive associations between daily routine disruptions and mental disorders amid the COVID-19 pandemic and factors that moderated the associations.

METHODS

PsycINFO, Web of Science, PubMed, and MEDLINE were systematically searched up to April 2023 (PROSPERO: CRD42023356846). Independent variables included regularity, change in frequency, and change in capability of different daily routines (i.e., physical activity, diet, sleep, social activities, leisure activities, work and studies, home activities, smoking, alcohol, combined multiple routines, unspecified generic routines). Dependent variables included symptoms and/or diagnoses of mental disorders (i.e., depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and general psychological distress).

RESULTS

Fifty-three eligible studies (51 independent samples, 910,503 respondents) were conducted in five continents. Daily routine disruptions were positively associated with depressive symptoms (r = 0.13, 95% CI = [0.06; 0.20], p < 0.001), anxiety symptoms (r = 0.12, 95% CI = [0.06; 0.17], p < 0.001), and general psychological distress (r = 0.09, 95% CI = [0.02; 0.16], p = 0.02). The routine-symptom associations were significant for physical activity, eating, sleep, and smoking (i.e., type), routines that were defined and assessed on regularity and change in capability (i.e., definition and assessment), and routines that were not internet-based. While the positive associations remained consistent across different sociodemographics, they were stronger in geo-temporal contexts with greater pandemic severity, lower governmental economic support, and when the routine-symptom link was examined prospectively.

CONCLUSIONS

This is one of the first meta-analytic evidence to show the positive association between daily routine disruptions and symptoms of mental disorders among large populations as COVID-19 dynamically unfolded across different geo-temporal contexts. Our findings highlight the priority of behavioral adjustment for enhancing population mental health in future large-scale disasters like COVID-19.

Psychological Capital and Quality of life of Refugees in Uganda During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Serial Mediation Model

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has in the past two years caused and continues to cause enormous effects on lifestyle, mental health, and quality of life. With no known treatment and vaccination, behavioral control measures became central in controlling the pandemic. However, the intensity of the pandemic and the stringent control measures were immensely stressful. The control measures became an added psychological burden to people living in precarious situations such as refugees in low-income countries. Purpose: Given the benefits of psychological capital, the present study aimed at investigating the role of psychological capital in enhancing the quality of life among refugees in Uganda during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was hypothesized that the effects of psychological capital on quality of life are serially mediated through coping strategies, adherence to COVID-19 control measures, and mental health. Methods: Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire in July and August 2020 after the first lockdown. Participants were 353 South Sudanese and Somali refugees living in Kampala city suburbs and Bidibidi refugee settlement. Findings: Psychological capital was positively associated with approach coping, mental health, and quality of life. However, psychological capital was negatively associated with adherence to COVID-19 control measures. Significant indirect effects of psychological capital on quality of life through approach coping, mental health, and adherence were found. However, serial mediation effects were only substantial via approach coping and mental health. Conclusion: Psychological capital is an important resource in coping with the challenges posed by COVID-19 and maintaining a good level of psychological functioning and quality of life. Preserving and boosting psychological capital is essential in responding to COVID-19 and other related disasters and crises, which are common in vulnerable populations such as refugee communities in low-income countries.

Being Virtuous Together: A One-Year Prospective Study on Organizational Virtuousness, Well-Being, and Organizational Commitment

Organizational virtuousness is defined as collective positive attributes and behaviors supported by and characteristic of an organization that promote hedonic well-being, eudaimonic well-being, and optimal performance. The underlying mechanisms through which organizational virtuousness operate remain largely unknown. Drawing from the broaden-and-build theory, organizational virtuousness is proposed to broaden employees' attention and cognition toward positive stimuli and events, and over time, build psychological resources for managing future endeavors. Building resources in turn promotes well-being and organizational commitment. A 3-wave prospective study (baseline, T1; 3 months, T2; and 1 year, T3) was conducted with a sample of 444 primary and secondary schoolteachers in Hong Kong. Organizational virtuousness, cognitive reappraisal, psychological capital (PsyCap), life satisfaction, flourishing, affective commitment, and contextual performance were assessed. The results showed that cognitive reappraisal and PsyCap served as sequential mediators of the relationships between three components of organizational virtuousness and all four indicators of well-being and organizational commitment. Collective gratitude, kindness, and forgiveness at T1 had significant indirect effects through cognitive reappraisal at T2 and then PsyCap at T3 on satisfaction with life, state of flourishing, emotional attachment to the organization, and engagement in extra-role activities that contribute to the organization's efficacy. This study is among the first to provide prospective data on the effects of organizational virtuousness. The results lead to a discussion of how organizations might shape a grateful, kind, and forgiving work culture using virtue-based management to achieve optimal individual and organizational functioning.