The 5-factor model of psychological response to COVID-19: its correlation with anxiety and depression

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the psychological response to COVID-19 on a community Egyptian sample and the correlation thereof with anxiety and depression. Further, we aimed to explore the differences in the psychological response and psychopathology in terms of demographics. We developed a COVID-19 Psychological Response Questionnaire (CPRQ). Further, we estimated the factor structure and internal consistency of CPRQ. Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) was utilized to assess Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) was utilized to assess Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). The sample comprised 7015 participants whose ages ranged between 18 and 70 years. The present study results yielded a 5-factor model of psychological response to COVID-19 (the factors are Anxiousness, Social Support, Avoiding/Cleaning, Depressivity, and Medical Concern). In terms of reliability, the internal consistency of the above factors was acceptable except for Depressivity. There were significant positive correlations between two factors (Anxiousness and Depressivity) and both MDD and GAD. In terms of demographic characteristics, females had the highest values on Anxiousness, Avoiding/Cleaning, Depressivity, MDD, and GAD. Generally, the 5-factor model reflects the psychological response to COVID-19 during the period of the outbreak. Further, this model reflects several concepts regarding models and theories of health-related behaviors.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-021-01701-y.

Keywords: COVID-19; EFA; Generalized anxiety disorder; Major depressive disorder; Psychological response model.

Fig. 1

Number of factors using the Parallel Analysis

Fig. 2

Number of factors using the Very Simple Structure analysis