Prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress among teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic: Systematic review

Abstract

ObjectiveIdentifying the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress among teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsSystematic review of original studies published in any language. Protocol published in PROSPERO under number CRD42021240543. The search was carried out in the Web of Science, PsycINFO, Pubmed, Embase, LILACS, and SciELO databases, using the descriptors: anxiety, depression, stress, teacher, faculty, COVID-19, and their synonyms. Narrative synthesis was carried out in line with the synthesis without meta-analysis (SWiM) in systematic reviews.ResultsOf the 1,372 records identified, six studies, all cross-sectional, were included in the review. The studies were carried out in China, Brazil, the United States of America, India, and Spain. Five studies included more women than men. The participants were aged from 24 to 60 years. Three studies included only school teachers, two included schools and universities teachers, and one only university teachers. Of the five studies, all dealt with remote activities and only one included teachers who returned to face-to-face classes one to two weeks ago. The prevalence of anxiety ranged from 10% to 49.4%, and depression from 15.9% to 28.9%, being considerably higher in studies with teachers who worked in schools. The prevalence of stress ranged from 12.6% to 50.6%.ConclusionsThe prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress was high among teachers during the pandemic, with great variation between studies. Anxiety and stress were more prevalent in the Spanish study. The results show the need for measures for the care of teachers’ mental health, especially when returning to face-to-face classes.What is already known about this subject?➢With remote classes during the COVID-19 pandemic, there were changes in the professional practice of teachers.➢Sudden changes in professional practice can result in increased levels of anxiety, depression, and stress.➢Returning to face-to-face classes can also result in increased levels of anxiety, depression, and stress.What are the new findings?➢The prevalence of anxiety ranged from 10% to 49.4%, with higher rates recorded in female teachers, with comorbidities and working in schools.➢The prevalence of depression ranged from 15.9% to 28.9%, with higher rates identified in school teachers.➢The prevalence of stress varied from 12.6% to 50.6%, with higher rates observed among female teachers and those with chronic diseases.➢The only study that performed data collection during the return to face-to-face classes registered a higher prevalence of anxiety and stress than the other studies, in which the research was carried out during remote classes.How might this impact policy or clinical practice in the foreseeable future?➢Better training of teachers to handle the remote education model can contribute to preventing work overload and mental problems. Further, pedagogical and psychological support, especially for those who work in schools, can also prove effective.➢The return to face-to-face classes can increase stress and anxiety. Ensuring bio-safety protocols for safe return to face-to-face activities, can contribute to mitigating anxiety and stress about the risk of contracting the disease.➢There is insufficient evidence to determine a cause and effect relationship of the COVID-19 pandemic with anxiety, depression, and stress among teachers. Prospective cohort studies with control of confounding factors are necessary to infer that the pandemic has increased mental health problems in these professionals.

Returning to work at school during the COVID -19 pandemic, is it stressful for schoolteachers? Assessment of immediate psychological effects: a cross sectional study

“…Our study also had more participation from female teachers (87.1%) with higher levels of symptomatology in them. Similarly, earlier studies have shown female teachers to have higher psychological symptoms through COVID-19 pandemic, 23,24 and this is true even in the pre-COVID times. 12,13 The present study showed a significant association between differences in gender with anxiety in teachers; such similar results were seen in previous studies.…”

“…23 In yet another similar systematic review in teachers, the stress levels varied from 12.6% to 50.6%, anxiety levels between 10% and 49.4%, and depression levels between 15.9% and 28.9%. 24 In our study and a survey conducted among Spanish teachers, 7 the prevalence of stress, anxiety, and depression in teachers was higher. Daily uncertainties of the COVID situation, getting exposed to more contacts while commuting to school, and interacting with students were reasons for higher stress and anxiety.…”

Stress among Teachers in Virtual Classrooms Working in the Higher Education Sector during the COVID-19 Outbreak

“…Studies estimated the universal outbreak was 28.0% for depression; 26.9% for anxiety; 24.1% for post-traumatic stress symptoms; 36.5% for stress; 50.0% for psychological distress; and 27.6% for sleep difficulties. Several studies documented that the prevalence of stress among professional teachers during a pandemic is very high, with significant variation [13].…”

Comparison of primary school teachers’ stress responses between pre-pandemic and pandemic periods: a large-scale nationwide survey in Japan

“…Participants were asked to choose their main stressors out of the following items (up to two items could be selected): (1) responsibility for students' learning, (2) school management duties, (3) giving a demonstration lesson, (4) leading extra-curricular club activities (5) dealing with difficult students, (6) dealing with challenging parents, (7) workload of clerical tasks, ( 8) relationship with colleagues, (9) relationship with supervisors, (10) unfamiliar work environment due to a transfer, (11) long commuting time, (12) personal problems, (13) other problems, and ( 14) nothing particular. The survey items on teachers' main stressors were selected by the Mutual Aid Association of Public School Teachers based on the opinions of psychiatrists and other mental health experts in affiliated hospitals.…”

“…The emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 in China at the end of 2019 led to a global pandemic, generating even more challenges for school teachers 9) . Studies undertaken during the pandemic reported a growing prevalence of anxiety and depression among teachers 9,10) . Countries implemented social distancing measures to reduce the spread of the contagion 11) .…”