“We Are Staying at Home.” Association of Self-perceptions of Aging, Personal and Family Resources, and Loneliness With Psychological Distress During the Lock-Down Period of COVID-19

Abstract

Objectives Families are going through a very stressful time because of the COVID-19 outbreak, with age being a risk factor for this illness. Negative self-perceptions of aging, among other personal and relational variables, may be associated with loneliness and distress caused by the pandemic crisis. Method Participants are 1,310 Spanish people (age range: 18–88 years) during a lock-down period at home. In addition to specific questions about risk for COVID-19, self-perceptions of aging, family and personal resources, loneliness, and psychological distress were measured. Hierarchical regression analyses were done for assessing the correlates of loneliness and psychological distress. Results The measured variables allow for an explanation of 48% and 33% of the variance of distress and loneliness, respectively. Being female, younger, having negative self-perceptions about aging, more time exposed to news about COVID-19, more contact with relatives different to those that co-reside, fewer positive emotions, less perceived self-efficacy, lower quality of sleep, higher expressed emotion, and higher loneliness were associated with higher distress. Being female, younger, having negative self-perceptions about aging, more time exposed to news about COVID-19, lower contact with relatives, higher self-perception as a burden, fewer positive emotions, lower resources for entertaining oneself, lower quality of sleep, and higher expressed emotion were associated with higher loneliness. Discussion Having negative self-perceptions of aging and lower chronological age, together with other measured family and personal resources, are associated with loneliness and psychological distress. Older adults with positive self-perceptions of aging seem to be more resilient during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The prevalence rate and demographic correlates of perceived stress in Alberta during the COVID-19 pandemic: A one-week cross-sectional study

“…Some reports indicate an absence of an association while others observe a signi cant positive or negative correlations between age and stress. 10,11,12 In agreement with others, 12,51 we found a negative correlation between age category and moderate/high stress in our model. Speci cally, individuals in the ≤ 25 year category were more likely to report on moderate/high stress levels compared to all other age categories.…”

“…48 Additionally, older individuals have been found to have lower reactivity to stressful events, which may be related to greater resiliency or more effective emotional regulation abilities. 51 Another explanation, based on research conducted during the SARS outbreak, is that younger individuals tend to have signi cant psychiatric morbidities, which has been shown to correlate with higher levels of stress. 12,53 More research is needed to elucidate the effects of age on perceived stress for COVID-19.…”

Mental Well-Being (Depression, Loneliness, Insomnia, Daily Life Fatigue) during COVID-19 Related Home-Confinement—A Study from Poland

“…Surprisingly, in the same study, the perceived impact of COVID-19 itself was negatively associated with loneliness and additionally positively associated with social support [ 35 ]. Studies suggest that loneliness during COVID-19 home confinement is more strongly felt by younger people [ 36 ]. However, interventions addressing loneliness during COVID-19 home confinement, which are discussed in literature, are proposed to be particularly important among the elderly [ 37 , 38 ].…”

Information on COVID-19 and Psychological Distress in a Sample of Non-Health Workers during the Pandemic Period

“…It may be debated whether spending more or less time receiving information about COVID-19 increases or reduces stress or concern [ 19 , 20 ], but it seems clear that believing that measures are effective in preventing contagion facilitates compliance [ 21 , 22 , 23 ]. From other pandemics we have learned that one of the factors that most contributed to reducing the psychological impact of having to be isolated at home is having received clear and consistent information [ 24 , 25 ]; this also reduces the perception of risk [ 16 ].…”