Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and well-being of communities: an exploratory qualitative study protocol

Abstract

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic has certainly resulted in an increased level of anxiety and fear in communities in terms of disease management and infection spread. Due to fear and social stigma linked with COVID-19, many individuals in the community hide their disease and do not access healthcare facilities in a timely manner. In addition, with the widespread use of social media, rumours, myths and inaccurate information about the virus are spreading rapidly, leading to intensified irritability, fearfulness, insomnia, oppositional behaviours and somatic complaints. Considering the relevance of all these factors, we aim to explore the perceptions and attitudes of community members towards COVID-19 and its impact on their daily lives and mental well-being.Methods and analysisThis formative research will employ an exploratory qualitative research design using semistructured interviews and a purposive sampling approach. The data collection methods for this formative research will include indepth interviews with community members. The study will be conducted in the Karimabad Federal B Area and in the Garden (East and West) community settings in Karachi, Pakistan. The community members of these areas have been selected purposively for the interview. Study data will be analysed thematically using NVivo V.12 Plus software.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval for this study has been obtained from the Aga Khan University Ethical Review Committee (2020-4825-10599). The results of the study will be disseminated to the scientific community and to the research subjects participating in the study. The findings will help us explore the perceptions and attitudes of different community members towards the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on their daily lives and mental well-being.

Fear of COVID-19 for Individuals and Family Members: Indications from the National Cross-Sectional Study of the EPICOVID19 Web-Based Survey

“…The results of this study, in agreement with other authors, showed a link between fear and depression/anxiety which confirms the importance of taking mental health needs into account, and this may also be particularly relevant when using a personalized approach to reduce health inequalities [ 57 , 58 ].…”

“…It is well known that fear and the connected risk perception directly and indirectly plays a role in the preventive behaviors that individuals adopt and the interventions they agree with. Studying fear is also important because of its links with people’s health conditions, considering the protective significance of fear as personal and collective assumption of responsibility in the face of an uncertain future [ 57 , 58 ].…”

Concerns of College Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Thematic Perspectives from the United States, Asia, and Europe

“…Qualitative research is critical in defining newly studied variables or contexts that are not well understood, especially with emergency situations such as the novel COVID-19 pandemic. This could help confirm and expand initial perceptions and insights that are still being formulated in the research (Feroz et al, 2020;Vindrola-Padros et al, 2021). Previous qualitative studies on COVID-19 and university students have had rather narrow foci, such as evaluating targeted topics with a single country sample (Brondani & Donnelly, 2020;Collado-Boira et al, 2020;Fawaz et al, 2021;Mukhtar et al, 2020;Nguyen et al, 2020;Ramos-Morcillo et al, 2020) or targeted higher educational programs in the health professions (Brondani & Donnelly, 2020;Ramos-Morcillo et al, 2020;White et al, 2020).…”

Relationships among the Internal Health Locus of Control, Mental Health Problems, and Subjective Well-Being of Adults in South Korea

“…In the previous study, the importance of social experiences that reinforce positive emotions was emphasized by verifying the mediating effect of life satisfaction (well-being) in the relationship in which the public's basic hopes affect anxiety [40]. As the COVID-19 pandemic has a longer-lasting impact on mental health than physical health, it is necessary to explore factors that threaten the well-being of community members in their daily lives [41]. Since subjective well-being is related to oneself [40], it is necessary to increase an individual's internal empowerment to maintain a positive psychological state toward personal achievement and development.…”