Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Chinese Teachers during COVID-19 Pandemic: Roles of Fear of COVID-19, Nomophobia, and Psychological Distress

Abstract

There are limited data concerning the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among teachers. Therefore, the present study estimated the prevalence of PTSD among mainland Chinese teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic and to construct a model with mediation and moderation effects to explain the PTSD. Data collection was conducted in schools in the Jiangxi province between October and November 2020 among k-12 schoolteachers. An online survey, including five different psychometric scales, was used to collect data. All participants were assessed for PTSD using the Chinese version of the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). Hayes’ PROCESS Model 8 was used to examine the potential factors explaining a higher PTSD scores. A total of 2603 teachers from k-12 schools participated. With the cutoff score at 31, the prevalence of PTSD was 12.3% but decreased to 1.0% when the cutoff score was at 49. Nomophobia moderated the effects of Fear of COVID-19 Scale on PTSD. The findings suggest that fear of COVID-19 among teachers leads to PTSD via psychological distress, highlighting the moderating effect of nomophobia in this association. Based on the study’s findings, psychological interventions and educational training are needed to reduce fear among teachers at higher risk of developing PTSD.

Gender Differences in the Associations Between Physical Activity, Smartphone Use, and Weight Stigma

“…A sample item for the NMPQ is “ I would feel uncomfortable without constant access to information through my smartphone” . Good psychometric properties of the NMPQ have been reported in its factor structure (i.e., a four-factor structure is supported) and internal consistency (α = 0.97) ( 29 , 50 ).…”

“…Given that university students are grown-ups who are fully in charge of their daily activities and have access to the modern technology, they tend to engage a substantial proportion of daily activities on smartphones ( 27 , 28 ). In other words, university students depend on smartphone substantially in their daily activities, they are therefore likely to develop nomophobia, a new concept of anxiety resulting from no mobile phone use (i.e., phobia of no mobile phone access) ( 29 , 30 ). Nomophobia may induce individuals to engage in more smartphone activities (e.g., greater smartphone and social media use) to relieve their anxiety of craving smartphone use ( 31 , 32 ).…”

Teachers’ Satisfaction, Role, and Digital Literacy during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Furthermore, research showed that teacher's mental conditions were impacted between September 2020 and October 2020 in Australia [95]. Overall, the COVID-19 pandemic dilapidated the foundation of teacher's emotional satisfaction, derived from a face-to-face student-teacher relationship in China, Japan, and the United States [90,96]. Available reports in a few studies pointed out that female teachers had survived lower satisfaction levels [97].…”

Variables Influencing Professors’ Adaptation to Digital Learning Environments during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Different studies over the last few months have developed the fundamental role played by soft skills in teachers’ and students’ ability to face the situation [ 26 ]. Similarly, different publications have analyzed the levels of stress and burnout in teachers of different educational levels in the pandemic scenario [ 1 , 34 , 35 ], as well as the psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, isolation, and loneliness that the pandemic has caused [ 36 , 37 , 38 ], detecting differences in the levels of stress generated in teachers according to gender [ 39 ], place of residence [ 40 , 41 ], and cultural and social characteristics [ 42 ]. Other studies have analyzed in teachers the relationship between work hours, work–family balance and quality of life (QoL) [ 43 , 44 ], although teachers already reported a low perception of QoL before the COVID-19 pandemic with a significant impact on mental and physical health due to various stress factors associated with work overload [ 45 ].…”