ABSTRACT
A possible explanation for the positive association may be related to the fact that during the period of the study (i.e., upon the announcement of the second lockdown), the leaders in Israel conveyed the message that the virus was very dangerous. [...]those who had trust in the leaders were more afraid of the virus than those who did not have trust (something along the lines of, "Wow, if they - the people I trust - are afraid, then there must really be reason to be afraid"). According to attachment style studies, leaders' or caregivers' own avoidance and anxiety, which might be related to a failure to defend and take care of "their people," can lead to negative implications for "their people's" mental health (7). Coping with COVID-19: Exposure to COVID-19 and negative impact on livelihood predict elevated mental health problems in Chinese adults.
ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: The current study longitudinally examined the moderating effects of consuming different types of media ( i.e. , formal [news] and informal [social media, WhatsApp]) in the association among COVID-19-related worries, intolerance of uncertainty (IU), and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSSs). Data were collected at two time points during July and September 2020, with approximately 60 days between measurements. Results showed that both COVID-19-related worries and IU were found to be positively associated with PTSSs. An interaction with formal media consumption was found, so that when one's formal media consumption was high, he or she were most vulnerable to the aforementioned effects on the development of PTSSs. Our findings point to the interactive effects of both COVID-19 worries and IU with media consumption on the development of PTSSs. Although media consumption might provide information during uncertainty, it may also intensify PTSSs during times of crisis. Implications and limitations are discussed.