Open AccessAnxiety, Depression, and Predictors amongst Iranian Students Aged 8 to 18 Years during the COVID-19 Outbreak First Peak
Author(s) -
Sanaz BahramiSamani,
Mojgan Firouzbakht,
Alireza Azizi,
Shabnam Omidvar
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
iranian journal of psychiatry.
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.503
H-Index - 17
eISSN - 2008-2215
pISSN - 1735-4587
DOI - 10.18502/ijps.v17i2.8909
Subject(s) - anxiety , depression (economics) , covid-19 , medicine , clinical psychology , mental health , outbreak , affect (linguistics) , psychology , psychiatry , demography , disease , virology , sociology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , economics , macroeconomics , communication
Objective: This study aimed to assess anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 outbreak among students aged 8 to 18 years and to determine related demographic and other related factors.
Method: A descriptive and analytical cross sectional study was conducted through web-based data collection which included 348 students aged 8 to 18 years in the state of Mazandaran, Iran during the first peak of COVID-19. Demographic and Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS-P) questionnaires were used to collect the data. The statistical tests including independent sample t test, ANOVA as well as linear regression were employed.
Results: The average age of the subjects was reported to be 12.2 ± 3.59 years. Age, father’s occupation, following COVID-19 related news, and also nervousness related to infection were predictors of anxiety (11%). Moreover, age, mother’s occupation, family communication and also the safety protocols practiced by the family were found to be predictors of depression in students (17%). A significant relationship was also found between the effect of quarantine on family communication and the anxiety and depression in students (P < 0.001).
Conclusion: Demographic characteristics affect student mental health during the COVID-19 outbreak. Moreover, family preventive protocols can predict depression in students aged 8 to 18 years. Better preventive precautions encourage less anxiety and depression.