Open AccessThe magnitude of COVID-19 related stress, anxiety and depression associated with intense mass media coverage in Saudi Arabi
Author(s) -
Yosef Mohamed-Azzam Zakout,
Fayez Saud Alreshidi,
Ruba Mustafa Elsaid,
Hussain Gadelkarim Ahmed
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
aims public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2327-8994
DOI - 10.3934/publichealth.2020052
Subject(s) - anxiety , mental health , depression (economics) , pandemic , covid-19 , medicine , population , psychiatry , dass , demography , clinical psychology , psychology , disease , environmental health , infectious disease (medical specialty) , sociology , economics , macroeconomics
The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has resulted in catastrophic consequences in many aspects of life; including negative psychological effects. We aimed to assess the mental health status of a group of Saudi population during this pandemic. Also, we aimed to assess the effect of the intensive media coverage of the pandemic news on mental health status. A questionnaire was distributed online to test depression, anxiety, and stress (using the DASS-21 scale) and their relationship to certain variables. A total of 215 respondents were included. Higher mental health prevalence rates were reported in non-Saudi participants compared to Saudi ones (i.e., 50.74% vs. 30.40%; 34.23% vs. 13.51% and 59.70% vs. 27.70%; for depression, anxiety and stress, respectively). About 55.8% of the participants felt the extensive coverage in the media of COVID-19 news, which caused higher mental sufferings. Higher mental health prevalence rates were reported in females compared to males participants (i.e., 56.97% vs. 23.25%; 30.23% vs. 13.17% and 54.65% vs. 26.35%; for depression, anxiety and stress, respectively). Reasonable following of the COVID-19 news; and less exposure to the pandemic information could help in reducing the mental health issues related to the ongoing pandemic. Special care and attention should be paid to females and younger people who seem to be particularly affected during the era of COVID-19.