Open AccessCOVID-19, social distance and adolescents’ risk behaviours, wellbeing and life satisfaction: a proxy study drawn from HBSC study
Author(s) -
Gina Tomé,
Cátia Branquinho,
Ana Cerqueira,
Margarida Gaspar de Matos
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
análisis y modificación de conducta/análisis y modificación de conducta
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2173-6855
pISSN - 0211-7339
DOI - 10.33776/amc.v47i175.4912
Subject(s) - social distance , psychology , mental health , life satisfaction , context (archaeology) , proxy (statistics) , portuguese , perception , pandemic , social psychology , flemish , covid-19 , psychiatry , medicine , geography , linguistics , philosophy , disease , archaeology , pathology , machine learning , neuroscience , computer science , infectious disease (medical specialty)
Depriving people of their liberty has devastating effects upon wellbeing and mental health, especially in adolescents. This was the situation with the recent COVID-19 pandemic that forced adolescents to stay at home.
In order to simulate a situation of absence of social interactions outside the family context, Portuguese data from the HBSC / WHO 2018 study were used. It was intended to explore and understand which of the usual adolescents’ health risk and protective factors would be more affected among those who do not have contact with peers after school.
The results show that, on the one hand, “social distancing from colleagues” in general reduces health risks, such as consumption of soft drinks, alcohol, tobacco and drug use and involvement in violence (fights, victimization by bullying and injuries). On the other hand, it decreases the perception of well-being and life satisfaction and in general increases the psychological symptoms.