Peritraumatic Distress and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms During the COVID‐19 Pandemic: The Contributions of Psychosocial Factors and Pandemic‐Related Stressors

Abstract

The present study aimed to identify the contributions of sociodemographic factors, psychological hardiness, and pandemic‐related stressors to the development of peritraumatic distress and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) during the peak of the COVID‐19 pandemic. We also examined the mediating contribution of peritraumatic distress with respect to the associations between PTSS and (a) individual characteristics and (b) pandemic‐related stressors. A total of 1,238 participants (82.1% women, 17.9% men) aged 18–75 years were included in the study. Participants completed the Dispositional Resilience Scale, Peritraumatic Distress Inventory, and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Checklist. The results showed that 11.5% of participants scored above the clinical cutoff for peritraumatic distress, and 12.8% of participants scored above the clinical cutoff for PTSS. Regression models showed that higher levels of peritraumatic distress were statistically predicted by female gender, β = ‐.12, p < .001; exposure to more than one stressor, β = .21, p < .001; lower levels of commitment to people and activities, β = –.12, p = .002; and resistance to challenges, β = –.17, p < .001. Additionally, male gender, β = .05, p = .007; younger age, β = –.05, p = .005; lower levels of commitment to people and activities, β = –.11, p < .001; lower ratings of hardiness with regard to challenge, β = –.04, p = .043; and more severe peritraumatic distress, β = .75, p < .001, predicted more severe PTSS during the pandemic. Peritraumatic distress mediated the associations between PTSS and both the number of experienced stressors and psychological hardiness.

Isolation, Economic Precarity, and Previous Mental Health Issues as Predictors of PTSD Status in Females Living in Fort McMurray During COVID-19

“…Yet, women have been shown to have a different pattern in terms of the PTSD symptoms and sleep quality experienced during COVID-19 (41), suggesting potentially distinct physiological mechanisms at work. Supporting this idea, other authors suggest that the genders may even respond differently to peritraumatic stress (experienced during and immediately after the event) compared to posttraumatic stress (42). As we have argued here, there can be a number of factors that affect female vulnerability to stressors differentially than males-economic, social, and emotional.…”

Hardiness predicts mental health recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“…Mental health conditions are being referred to as an additional epidemic superimposed on the COVID-19 pandemic, and a growing number of studies are recognizing that the pandemic could be related to posttraumatic stress symptomatology for some populations (Hisham et al, 2021). As anticipated by clinical scientists early in the pandemic (e.g., Gruber et al, 2021), and suggested by recent studies (Antičević et al, 2021; Bridgland et al, 2021), participants reported symptoms related to traumatic stress and impairment. As such, the identification of psychological resources that might facilitate reductions in TSSs is critical.…”

Peritraumatic distress across the lifespan: Clinical implications of age differences during the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…We wondered if using the PDI (Brunet et al., 2001 ) would allow for a more focussed analysis of the emotional and physiological experiences predicting the development of traumatic stress symptoms during the COVID‐19 pandemic across age groups. To date, a handful of studies suggest that people anxious about or at risk of contracting the virus (Yoon et al., 2021 ), healthcare professionals (Blekas et al., 2020 ), child welfare workers (Miller et al., 2020 ), women (Antičević et al., 2021 ), and individuals with poorer coping strategies (Levaot et al., 2022 ) experience higher levels of peritraumatic distress, as measured with the PDI, during the pandemic. Moreover, among older adults (60–92 years old), higher levels of COVID‐19 health worries were correlated with higher levels of peritraumatic distress symptoms (Greenblatt‐Kimron et al., 2021 ).…”