The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on University Faculty, Staff, and Students and Coping Strategies Used During the Lockdown in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown instigated serious mental health conditions. So far, the UAE data on mental health problems due to this pandemic outbreak is still scarce. The objective of this study was to identify the prevalent psychological difficulties experienced by university students, faculty members, and staff during COVID-19 lockdown and the coping strategies used.Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to collect data from 737 participants using an online electronic survey. Participants included students, faculty members, and staff from universities in the UAE. The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) was used to measure general distress, Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ-16) was used to measure worry, and the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS-48) was administered to measure coping strategies used by participants during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Data were collected during May to June 2020.Results: The results indicated that 60.4% of students, 57.4% of the faculty members, and 52.3% of the staff experienced mild psychiatric problems. About 32.9% of students, 33.7% of the faculty members, and 25% of the staff experienced high levels of worry during the COVID-19 lockdown. Changes in eating patterns, worsening chronic health problems, change in sleep patterns, and concentration difficulties were reported. Furthermore, significant differences were observed in worry and coping strategies among participants. Women use more avoidance and emotion-focused coping compared to men.Conclusion: It was concluded that COVID-19 lockdown has negatively impacted university faculty, staff, and students in terms of health behavior, psychological and physical health.

Associations among perceived built environment, attitudes, walking behavior, and physical and mental state of college students during COVID-19

“…Although this measure helped control the spread of COVID-19, it led to several physical and mental health issues. Studies have reported that COVID-19 lockdowns negatively impacted the health behavior (e.g., eating/sleeping patterns, physical activity) and psychological and physical health ( Al Miskry et al, 2021 , Ingram et al, 2020 , Pakenham et al, 2020 ). University students are a particularly vulnerable group and experienced increased anxiety and moderate to severe stress during the mandatory lockdowns ( Husky et al, 2020 ).…”

A Qualitative Evaluation of the Barriers and Enablers for Implementation of an Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Testing Service at the University of Nottingham: A Multi-Site Higher Education Setting in England

“…The negative impact of the pandemic on university staff and students has been recognised [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 51 ]. Our participants indicated that the provision of testing onsite was beneficial, both for wellbeing and a perception of feeling safe on campus.…”

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of university students in the United Arab Emirates: a cross-sectional study

“…Our ndings were further supported by the results of a recent study that used PHQ-9 and the GAD-7 scales to evaluate a sample of university students during the COVID-19 pandemic and found that depressive and anxiety symptoms were prevalent in 45.2% and 38.3% of the students [48]. During stressful situations, like this pandemic, fear and anxiety about the disease can be overwhelming and it may negatively impact the mental health of all the sectors of the population [49,50], and students in particular [51]. Fears of infection, social distancing, vaccination drives, prolonged university closure, challenges with online learning and uncertainty over examinations all cause stress and anxiety to students worldwide [6,36,43].…”