The COVID-19 “First Lockdown” Experience in Italy: The Role of Hope and Optimism and Their Impact on Psychological Well-Being and Risk Perception

Abstract

Introduction: The present study investigates the lockdown experience in Italy during the COVID-19 pandemic within a positive psychology framework, focusing on the protective role of the positive anticipatory states: optimism and hope. Aims: The aims were to verify if and how optimism and hope influenced people’s psychological wellbeing and their risk perception of the situation, addressing how individuals portrayed the present and how they imagined the future after the lockdown. Methods: Based on the differences between the two constructs, as from the literature, the hypothesis is that individuals with higher levels of optimism would report positive but hazy future scenarios and lower levels of risk perception about the future. Therefore 1,471 participants received an online survey, which was administered as a set of questionnaires investigating three areas: demographic information, psychological wellbeing, and risk of contagion perception. Results: The results showed that positive anticipatory states are positively associated with psychological wellbeing. Moreover, the results highlighted the relationship between optimism and risk perception regarding future scenarios. Conclusions: The presented predictive model demonstrated that positive anticipatory states, sex, and age had a central role in determining the psychological wellbeing during the first wave of the pandemic events in Italy. Practical implications are discussed.

Risk perception of coronavirus disease 2019 and career adaptability among college students: the mediating effect of hope and sense of mastery

“…Therefore, when the perceived uncontrollability increases, people will experience a negative mental state, such as anxiety and pessimism, and reduce hope. Hope can be seen as a powerful motivator that drives inner energy to deal with difficulties and challenges (Biassoni et al, 2022 ). Individuals with a high level of hope tend to show concern for the future and look to the future, and to prepare for future tasks that may arise.…”

The Effect of Risk Perception and Self-Control on Preventive Behaviour After Covid-19 Vaccination

“…A person's perception or view of the risk they are facing is referred to as their risk perception. Risk perception is a person's subjective evaluation of a risk that endangers them now or in the future (5) (6). The risk of harm can be in the form of events, situations, natural disasters, or places made by humans.…”

Narratives on the present and the future in the time of COVID-19 pandemic: Uncertainty, subjective feeling and the role of positive anticipatory states

“…Optimism is defined as a positive tendency with an expectation that outcomes will generally be positive (Taylor, 1989). According to Taylor, people employ positive illusions to deal with events that involve knowledge that is ambiguous, insufficient, or emotionally difficult (Taylor, 1989;Biassoni et al, 2022). Optimism is distinct from hope in that hope endures even when the future seems bleak (Lazarus, 1999;Gasper et al, 2020).…”

“…However, recent literature distinguishes between dispositional optimism and unrealistic optimism, which promotes a distorted view of the world and challenges the claim that the idea that having overly optimistic beliefs and forecasts benefits mental health (Gordeevaa et al, 2020). However, healthy optimism is adaptive in coping with uncontrollable events and long-term stressors to enhance wellbeing (Scheier and Carver, 1985;Nes, 2016;Biassoni et al, 2022). Furthermore, the link between optimism and the illusion of control is also evidenced (Harris and Middleton, 1994;Rudski, 2004).…”