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. 2021 Nov:305:114206.
doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114206. Epub 2021 Sep 6.

Short-term psychological consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic: Results of the first wave of an ecological daily study in the Italian population

Emanuele Preti  1 , Rossella Di Pierro  2 , Gaia Perego  3 , Marta Bottini  3 , Erica Casini  2 , Elena Ierardi  3 , Fabio Madeddu  2 , Martina Mazzetti  4 , Cristina Riva Crugnola  2 , Paola Taranto  4 , Valentina Di Mattei  5
Affiliations

Short-term psychological consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic: Results of the first wave of an ecological daily study in the Italian population

Emanuele Preti et al. Psychiatry Res. 2021 Nov.

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemic involved several psychosocial consequences. We aimed at monitoring the mental health of Italian adults during the lockdown imposed by the government. We present here results from the baseline assessment of the "EmotionalThermometer [TermometroEmotivo] project on a sample of 1548 Italian adults. We assessed the socio-demographic conditions of participants, individuals' perception of the COVID-19-situation, psychological distress, emotion regulation strategies, and perceived social support. Having a worse representation of COVID-19 and consulting news more frequently, with higher anxiety and less credibility of different sources of information, were positively associated with psychological distress and post-traumatic responses. Being female, younger age, living in high-risk regions, having symptoms of COVID-19, and having relatives/friends with such symptoms represented risk factors for a worse perception of COVID-19 and distress. Social support and cognitive reappraisal represented protective factors for mental health.

Keywords: COVID-19; emotion regulation; mental health; post-traumatic stress; psychological distress; social support.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no kown competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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