Background: Previous studies have found that disaster-related media exposure could predict acute stress responses. However, few studies have investigated the relationship between media exposure to COVID-19 and acute stress, and less is known about the mechanisms that translate media exposure to COVID-19 into acute stress. The current study explored the impact of media exposure to COVID-19 on acute stress, and examined the mediating role of intolerance of uncertainty (IU) and the moderating role of perceived social support (PSS).Methods: A total of 1,483 Chinese participants (Mage = 27.93 years, SD = 8.45) completed anonymous online questionnaires regarding media exposure to COVID-19, IU, PSS, and acute stress during the COVID-19 outbreak in China.Results: Media exposure to COVID-19 was positively related to acute stress, and IU partially mediated this relationship. The direct effect of media exposure to COVID-19 on acute stress, and the relationship between IU and acute stress, were both moderated by PSS. The impacts of both media exposure to COVID-19 and IU on acute stress were stronger for individuals with low PSS.Limitations: This study collected data in a shorter timeframe, and no assessments occurred during the follow-up, which may prevent us from detecting the changes of the relationships between variables over time. Meanwhile, the self-report method limited the validity of the data due to subjective reporting bias.Conclusions: These findings contribute to a better understanding of how and when pandemic-related media exposure affects acute stress, and provide new perspectives for the prevention to reduce psychological problems following traumatic events.
Background The COVID-19 outbreak has forced teachers to transition to online teaching, requiring them to adapt their courses and pedagogical methods to an online format rapidly without relevant training. This has presented a formidable challenge to higher education teachers. The present study uses a person-centered approach to identify heterogeneity among higher education teachers’ affective experiences and the relationship between this heterogeneity and their psychological adjustment to online teaching. Methods In total, 2,104 teachers in higher education institutions in Southern China were surveyed using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule and the Psychological Adjustment to Online Teaching Scale (a measure developed for this study) between March 25 and March 31, 2020. The collected data were analyzed using latent profile analysis. Results Based on their affective experiences during online teaching immediately after the COVID-19 outbreak, higher education teachers were divided into three latent classes: the common, ambivalent, and positive types. Among them, the positive type accounted for the largest proportion (44.85%), while the ambivalent type accounted for the smallest proportion (23.93%). The rest was the common type, which accounted for 31.15%. Significant differences in psychological adjustment to online teaching were found between the three latent classes. Regarding positive psychological adjustment, teachers belonging to the ambivalent type had significantly lower scores than those belonging to the other two types. Further, the common type had a significantly lower score than the positive type. Regarding negative psychological adjustment, the ambivalent type had a significantly higher score than the other two types, and the common type had a significantly higher score than the positive type. Conclusion Based on a novel person-centered perspective, this study revealed the differences and complexity in higher education teachers’ affective experiences of online teaching immediately after the COVID-19 outbreak. The three different types of affective experiences (common, ambivalent, and positive) had a significant influence on psychological adjustment, with teachers belonging to the ambivalent type showing the worst psychological adjustment. This study provides a new perspective for the discussion of the relationship between teachers’ affective experiences and their psychological adjustment to online teaching.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.