Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Jul 6, 2020
Date Accepted: Aug 10, 2020
Date Submitted to PubMed: Aug 14, 2020
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Depression and Psycho-behavioral Responses among the General Public during the Early Stages of the COVID-19 Outbreak: A nationwide smart phone questionnaire survey in China
ABSTRACT
Background:
COVID-19 has spread dramatically around the world recently, resulting in detrimental effects on people’s psychological health. Depression among the general public is common and has raised considerable concerns.
Objective:
This study aims to assess the prevalence of depression and the associated factors among the general public in China.
Methods:
A cross-sectional survey with convenience sampling was conducted from February 11th to 16th, 2020, in the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in China. A smart phone self-administrated questionnaire pertaining to the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and psycho-behavioral responses was distributed to the general public. Hierarchical linear regression analysis was conducted to explore the predictors of depression.
Results:
The prevalence of depression among the general public during the COVID-19 outbreak was 34.6%. Regression analysis indicated feeling stressed, feeling helpless, persistently being worried even with support, never feeling clean after disinfecting, scrubbing hands and items repeatedly, hoarding food, medicine or daily supplies and being distracted from work or study were positively associated with depression. Social support and being calm was negatively associated with depression.
Conclusions:
The general public suffered from high levels of depression during COVID-19 epidemic. Feeling stressed, helpless and persistently being worried even with support were the risk factors for depression. Whereas, being calm and accessing social support decreased the risks for depression. Thus, COVID 19-related mood management should be provided to attenuate depression for the general public.
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