The Perceived Assessment of Covid-19 Impact on Mental Functioning and Suicidality in Adult Population of Serbia

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the extent to which people in Serbia in the post-pandemic period assess the impact of coronavirus pandemic on their mental/professional functioning, and whether this assessment is correlated with the occurrence of suicidal ideation and behaviours. The retrospective-prospective study was conducted online via Google Forms during January 2023. The sample included 341 respondents from the general population, 250 women (73.3%) and 91 men (26.7%), aged from 19 to 72 (M=36.41, SD=14.72). Sociodemographic questionnaire, a questionnaire on the pandemic effects, and the Risk Assessment Suicidality Scale were used to obtain data. The respondents assessed the pandemic not to have exerted a significant effect on their mental life (M=1.19±0.84) and professional functioning (M=1.55±1.02). The women, university students, pensioners and single respondents reported a greater impact of the pandemic on mental functioning, while university students and single respondents reported a greater impact on professional functioning. The respondents who were assessed to be at suicide risk (15.8%) reported a higher effect of the pandemic on mental (U=5385, p<0.001) and professional functioning (U=5799, p<0.01). Multivariant binary logistic regression showed that having a family history of mental disorders (odds ratio 2.73), younger age (OR, 1.1) and not being in a relationship (OR, 0.49) increased suicide risk in this sample. Results are in line with previous findings indicating that women, university students and pensioners reported a higher effect of the pandemic on the level of stress, depression and anxiety symptoms. The study also speaks in favour of a specific vulnerability of people suffering from mental difficulties after the pandemic.