Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Brazilian university students during the COVID-19 pandemic

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.1806-6976.smad.2023.195563

Keywords:

Coronaviruses, GAD-7, Patient Health Questionnaire, Regression Analysis, Students

Abstract

Objective: this study assessed the anxiety levels of Brazilian university students during the
COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale was used to
measure the anxiety levels of 1,837 respondents to an online research questionnaire. Results:
the participants were mostly women aged from 18 to 27 years old, enrolled in graduate programs
at public universities, living with people considered at risk for COVID-19, and earning family
incomes of 1 to 3 minimum wages. More than 75% of the participants reported some level of
anxiety, with 23.08% reporting severe levels, while only 24.93% experienced normal anxiety
levels. The ordinal logistic regression identified that being a young woman with a low income
could affect the anxiety level. Additionally, students from the field of humanities, well-informed
students and those at risk for COVID-19 were significantly more likely to experience anxiety.
Conclusion: the mental health of Brazilian university students, particularly certain groups, was
affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and requires specific attention and care.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Hossain MM, Sultana A, Purohit N. Mental health outcomes of quarantine and isolation for infection prevention: a systematic umbrella review of the global evidence. Epidemiol Health [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Jul 20];42:e2020038. Available from: https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2020038

Asmundson GJG, Taylor S. How health anxiety influences responses to viral outbreaks like COVID-19: What all decision-makers, health authorities, and health care professionals need to know. J Anxiety Disord [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Jul 20];71:102211. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7271220/

Cao W, Fang Z, Hou G, Han M, Xu X, Dong, J, et al. The psychological impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on college students in China. Psychiatry Res [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Jul 20];287:112934. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112934

Guthrie S, Lichten CA, Belle JV, Bola S, Knack A, Hofman J, et al. Understanding mental health in the research environment: A Rapid Evidence. Rand Saúde Q [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2020 Jul 20];7(3):2. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29607246

Johnson SU. Psychometric Properties of the General Anxiety Disorder 7-Item (GAD-7) Scale in a Heterogeneous Psychiatric Sample. Front Psychol [Internet]. 2019 [cited 2020 Jul 4];10:1713. Available from: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01713

Huckins JF, Silva AW, Wang W, Hedlund E, Rogers C, Nepal SK, et al. Mental Health and Behavior of College Students During the Early Phases of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Longitudinal Smartphone and Ecological Momentary Assessment Study. J Med Internet Res [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Jul 30];22(6):e20185. Available from: https://doi.org/10.2196/20185

Naser AY, Dahmash EZ, Al-Rousan R, Alwafi H, Alrawashdeh HM, Ghoul I, et al. Mental health status of the general population, healthcare professionals, and university students during 2019 coronavirus disease outbreak in Jordan: A cross-sectional study. Brain Behav [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Jul 30];10(8):e01730. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.1730

Savitsky B, Findling Y, Ereli A, Hendel T. Anxiety and coping strategies among nursing students during the covid-19 pandemic. Nurse Educ Pract [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2021 Oct 3];46:102809. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2020.102809

Bártolo A, Monteiro S, Pereira A. Factor structure and construct validity of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) among Portuguese college students. Cad Saúde Pública [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2021 Oct 3];33(9):e00212716. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1590/0102-311X00212716

Abdellatif W, Ding J, Jalal S, Nguyen T, Khorshed D, Rybicki FJ, et al. Lack of gender disparity among administrative leaders of Canadian health authorities. J Women's Health (Larchmt) [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2021 Jul 20];29(11):1469-74. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2019.7852

Cornine A. Reducing nursing student anxiety in the clinical setting: an integrative review. Nurs Educ Perspect [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2021 Jul 20];41(4):229-34. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NEP.0000000000000633

Husky MM, Kovess-Masfety V, Swendsen JD. Stress and anxiety among university students in France during Covid-19 mandatory confinement. Compr Psychiatry [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2021 Jan 13];102:152191. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2020.152191

Islam A, Barna SD, Raihan H, Khan NA, Hossain T. Depression and anxiety among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh: A web-based cross-sectional survey. PloS ONE [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2021 Jul 14];15(8):e0238162. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0238162

Rudenstine S, McNeal K, Schulder T, Ettman CK, Hernandez M, Gvozdieva K, et al. Depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in an urban, low-income public university sample. J Trauma Stress [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2021 Jan 14];34:12-22. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.22600

Maia RB, Dias PC. Anxiety, depression and stress in university students: the impact of COVID-19. Estud Psicol [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Jul 4];37:e200067. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-0275202037e200067

Papanikola G, Borcan D, Sanida E, Emmanuel E. Santé mentale au féminin: entre vulnérabilité intrinsèque et impacts des facteurs psychosociaux? Rev Med Suisse [Internet]. 2015 [cited 2020 Sept 29];487:1750-4. Available from: https://www.revmed.ch/revue-medicale-suisse/2015/revue-medicale-suisse-487/sante-mentale-au-feminin-entre-vulnerabilite-intrinseque-et-impacts-des-facteurs-psychosociaux

Özdin S, Özdin BŞ. Levels and predictors of anxiety, depression and health anxiety during COVID-19 pandemic in Turkish society: The importance of gender. Int J Soc Psychiatry [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2021 Apr 19];66(5):504-11. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764020927051

Simić-Vukomanović A, Mihajlovic G, Kocić S, Djonović N, Banković D, Vukomanović V, et al. The prevalence and socioeconomic correlates of depressive and anxiety symptoms in a group of 1,940 Serbian university students. Vojnosanit Pregl [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2021 Apr 19];73(2):169-77. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27071285

Wang C, Tee M, Roy AE, Fardin MA, Srichokchatchawan W, Habib HA, et al. The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on physical and mental health of Asians: A study of seven middle-income countries in Asia. PLoS ONE [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2021 Apr 19];2:e0246824. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0246824

Moreno E, Muñoz-Navarro R, Medrano LA, González-Blanch C, Ruiz-Rodriguez P, Limonero JT, et al. Factorial invariance of a computerized version of the GAD-7 across various demographic groups and over time in primary care patients. J Affect Disord [Internet]. 2019 [cited 2021 Apr 19];252:114-21. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2019.04.032

Ribeiro FS, Santos FH, Anunciação L, Barrozo L, Fernandez JL, Leist AK. Exploring the Frequency of Anxiety and Depression Symptoms in a Brazilian Sample during the COVID-19 Outbreak. Int. J. Environ. Res Public Health [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2021 Apr 19];18(9):4847. Available from: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094847

Tran A, Tran L, Geghre N, Darmon D, Rampal M, Brandon D, et al. Health assessment of French university students and risk factors associated with mental health disorders. Plos ONE [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2021 Apr 19];12(11):e0188187. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0188187

Tolares J, O'Higgins M, Maia JMC, Ventriglio A. The outbreak of COVID-19 coronavirus and its impact on global mental health. Int J Soc Psychiatry [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Dec 23];66(4):317-20. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764020915212

Pfefferbaum MD, Norte CS. Mental Health and the Covid-19 Pandemic. N Engl J Med [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Dec 23];383(6):510-2. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp2008017.

Rodrigues BB, Cardoso RRJ, Peres CHR, Marques FF. Learning from the Unpredictable: College Students’ Mental Health and Medical Education in the Covid-19 Pandemic. Braz J Med Educ [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Dec 23];44(sup.1):e0149. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1590/1981-5271v44.supl.1-20200404

Moreira WC. Mental illness in the general population and health professionals during COVID-19: a scoping review. Texto Contexto Enferm [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Dec 23];29:e20200215. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-265X-TCE-2020-0215

Downloads

Published

2023-06-07

Issue

Vol. 19 No. 2 (2023): SMAD, Revista Eletrônica Saúde Mental, Álcool e Drogas

Section

Original Article

License

Copyright (c) 2023 SMAD Revista Eletrônica Saúde Mental Álcool e Drogas (Edição em Português)

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Soares, F. F. ., Brilhante, A. F., Cruz , A. O. da ., Sinhorin, G. H. ., Sinhorin, G. T. ., Cruz, J. G. O. da ., Lago, R. R. ., Brandt, M. de P. R. ., & Melchior, L. A. K. . (2023). Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Brazilian university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. SMAD Revista Eletrônica Saúde Mental Álcool E Drogas (Edição Em Português), 19(2), 55-62. https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.1806-6976.smad.2023.195563