Background : The Covid-19 pandemic is associated with adverse mental health outcomes for people worldwide. Objective : The study aimed to assess mental health during the Covid-19 pandemic and the key risk factors from the human ecology perspective in Croatia’s adult population. Method : An online panel survey with 1,201 adult participants (50.1% women) was done with a nationally representative sample in terms of gender, age, and country region four months after the nation lockdown began and two months after most of the restrictions were lifted. Indicators of mental health included symptoms of adjustment disorder (ADNM-8); depression, anxiety, and stress (DASS-21); symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PC-PTSD-5); and well-being (WHO-5). Results : In the entire sample, 9.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 7.9%, 14.0%) of the participants were at risk of adjustment disorder, 7.7% (95% CI: 6.7%, 11.9%) were at risk of depression disorder, and 7.8% (95% CI: 5.3%, 10.3%) were at risk of anxiety disorder. In addition, 7.2% (95% CI: 5.3%, 10.2%) were experiencing high levels of stress. The average well-being score was 56.5 ( SD = 21.91) on a scale from 0 to 100. Among the participants who have lifetime traumatic experience ( n = 429), 14% (95% CI: 10.6%, 17.2%) were at risk for PTSD. Key risk factors for specific mental health outcomes differed, but the common ones included: current health status, previous mental health diagnosis, and psychological resilience. Being younger, having a below-average income, and excessively following news about Covid-19 were predictive for some of the mental health problems. Conclusions : Together, the key risk factors identified in this study indicate the need for public health interventions addressing the general population’s mental health, but also for specific risk groups. Lower rates of mental health symptoms assessed soon after lifting quarantine measures that have been found in other studies may indicate human resilience capacity.

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The aim of this paper was to investigate the experience of possible positive consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and their connection with indicators of mental health and well-being, and to identify themes by which people describe the positive consequences of the pandemic. As part of a broader longitudinal project, participants completed a comprehensive online survey on various aspects of the pandemic. This paper presents the results obtained from 1,201 adult participants (50.1% women) on a quantitative measure of the experienced positive consequences, and on the qualitative answers to an open question about the positive aspects of the pandemic. The quantitative measure was created for the purposes of this research. Measures of sociodemographic factors, mental health (DASS-21) and well-being (WHO-5) were also used. The results show that participants experience positive consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic through three factors: Awareness of life values, More time for oneself, and New job opportunities. Awareness of life values was ranked as the most important, then More time for oneself, and finally New job opportunities. Participants who were more aware of these three aspects of the positive effects of COVID-19 also showed significantly greater subjective well-being and resilience, while associations with depression, anxiety, and stress were negligible or low. Women were more aware of changes in their life values than men, while men had a greater experience of new job opportunities. The results of the qualitative responses show that 83.4% of participants recognised some form of positive consequences of the pandemic on their lives, on the lives of other people, and on society. Analyses revealed seven themes: better family relationships, reflection and personal growth, social well-being, digitalisation of work and education, improved personal life, environmental effects, and competent pandemic management. Together, the results point to the importance of thinking about and exploring positive consequences of crisis events in the context of individual resilience and well-being.

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Using apps like Tinder is becoming increasingly popular, especially among youth. Although there is an increase in Tinder use, only a few studies have addressed the motives for using Tinder and the problematic use of Tinder. This study aims to examine the frequency of use and motives for the use of Tinder among young people and to examine the predictors of problematic use of Tinder. The research was conducted online, and the following measuring instruments were used: Tinder Use Motivation Scale, Problematic Tinder Use Scale and Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale. Participants (N = 191; F = 75.3%; Mage = 23.14, SDage = 2.779) stated that their most common reason for using Tinder is boredom, looking for an intimate partner, looking for a sexual partner, and finally improving self-esteem. The results on this sample show that women spend more time on Tinder than men, and men are more likely to look for a sexual partner than women. Participants who express a higher level of need for relatedness frustration, use Tinder to find an intimate partner or raise self-confidence, access it more frequently and spend more time on Tinder, show a higher level of problematic use of Tinder.