Longitudinal investigation of factors influencing mental health during centralized quarantine for COVID-19

BACKGROUND

Centralized quarantine was applied in response to the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak. The present study aimed to investigate changes in psychological status of isolated individuals before and after quarantine.

METHODS

Between August 2020 and July 2021, 648 participants completed the following psychometric evaluations before and after centralized quarantine: 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire for depression, 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder for anxiety, the Chinese version of the Connor Davidson Resilience Scale for psychological resilience, the Chinese version of the Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire for coping style, Jiang's revised Chinese version of the Perceived Social Support Scale for social support and the Chinese version of the Impact of Events Scale for stress.

RESULTS

At the beginning of centralized quarantine, 83.2% (n=539) of participants had no depressive mood, 11% (n=71) had mild depressive mood and 5.8% (n=38) had moderate-severe depressive mood. At the end of quarantine, 80.8% (n=524) of participants had no depressive mood, 13% (n=84) had mild depressive mood and 6.2% (n=41) had moderate-severe depressive mood. At the beginning of the centralized quarantine, 86.7% (n=562) of participants had no anxiety, 9.6% (n=62) had mild anxiety and 3.7% (n=24) had moderate-severe anxiety. At the end of quarantine, 85.8% (n=556) of participants had no anxiety, 11.6% (n=75) had mild anxiety and 2.6% (n=17) had moderate-severe anxiety. After 2 weeks of centralized quarantine, anxiety (t=2.175, p<0.05), stress (t=7.453, p<0.01) and three stress subscale scores (p<0.01) decreased significantly; psychology resilience (t=-3.63, p<0.01), tenacity (t=-4.747, p<0.01), active coping style (t=-3.83, p<0.01) and support outside family (t=-3.07, p<0.05) all increased significantly. No significant change was observed in depression, strength, optimism, passive coping style or support inside family. Depression and anxiety scores associated significantly with resilience, stress, coping styles and social support scores. Anxiety (B=0.488, β=0.413, p<0.01), psychological resilience (B=-0.047, β=-0.203, p<0.01) and stress (B=1.475, β=0.167, p<0.1) scores before centralized quarantine were associated with depression after quarantine. Depression (B=0.323, β=0.422, p<0.01), psychological resilience (B=-0.022, β=-0.123, p<0.01) and stress (B=1.408, β=0.207, p<0.01) scores before quarantine also influenced anxiety levels after quarantine. A cross-lagged panel model indicated that depression, anxiety, resilience and stress scores at the first assessment were predictive of depression and anxiety levels at the second assessment.

CONCLUSIONS

Good mental health during centralized quarantine was associated with high scores of psychological resilience, impact of events, coping styles and social support and did not become worse in settings where adequate support was available.

Benefit-finding buffers the effects of home confinement and centralized quarantine (HCCQ) on late midlife and older adults' mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: Older adults' well-being may suffer due to prolonged social isolation leading to loneliness and increased stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study aimed to address the role of benefit-finding, defined as the capacity to derive meaning and positive aspects from stressful situations, in late midlife and older adults' adaptation to the effects of home confinement and centralized quarantine (HCCQ).Methods: 421 participants aged 50 or above in mainland of China participated in an online survey to study the effects of HCCQ on loneliness, stress, anxiety, depression and life satisfaction, as well as the moderating role of benefit-finding.Results: Correlational analysis showed that a history of HCCQ was basically unrelated to any outcome. However, the effect actually varied by levels of benefit-finding. Among late midlife and older people with lower benefit-finding, those who had experienced HCCQ reported more loneliness, perceived stress, as well as more anxiety and depressive symptoms; no such relationships were found when benefit-finding was moderate or high.Conclusion: The findings extended our understanding of the role of benefit-finding in buffering the negative impact of adversity. By mitigating the effects of prolonged social isolation, benefit-finding served as a protective factor in late midlife and older people's adaptation to the sequelae of this pandemic.