Pandemic experiences and psychopathological aspects in individuals with mood disorders and other mental disorders

Individuals with different personality traits, temperaments, and psychological symptoms have different attitudes toward the pandemic experiences and restrictive measures. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the associations between the psychological factors and the attitudes toward COVID-19, experienced during the third pandemic wave in Italy, in a sample of individuals with psychiatric disorders. Between March and September 2021, 53 patients with mood disorders and other mental disorders completed a survey composed of self-report questionnaires that assessed sleep quality, depressive and hypomanic symptoms, and temperament and personality traits. Positive and negative attitudes toward the pandemic experience were assessed using an ad hoc questionnaire. The results showed that individuals with more severe depressive symptoms were less prone to adhere to government guidelines, and were more convinced that the pandemic was not a real problem. Reduced sleep quality was associated with increased skepticism toward official explanations concerning the causes of COVID-19. Lastly, negative affect and cyclothymic temperament predicted the disposition toward COVID-19 vaccines. In conclusion, these findings highlighted that some psychological aspects and psychiatric symptoms could influence the beliefs about COVID-19 and compliance with government recommendations. Further research is needed to provide indications on how to improve the current healthcare policies.

Escaping the Reality of the Pandemic: The Role of Hopelessness and Dissociation in COVID-19 Denialism.

BACKGROUND: Denialism of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severely affected governments' attempts to contain the spread of the virus. Indeed, groups of deniers showed scepticism and misinformation toward the causes of the virus, leading to less adherence to official guidelines and vaccination campaigns. The present study aimed to investigate the sociodemographic and psychological factors associated with COVID-19 denialism, expressed in the forms of scepticism, nonadherence to guidelines, and negative attitudes toward vaccination. METHODS: Four hundred and sixty-one volunteers completed an online survey composed of the Beck Hopelessness Scale, the Dissociative Experiences Scale-II, the Sense of Community Index, and a questionnaire about COVID-19 denialism. RESULTS: The multiple regression analyses showed that higher age and a lower level of education were positive predictors of COVID-19 denialism. Furthermore, the structural equation model showed that hopelessness positively predicted dissociation and negatively predicted the sense of community. In turn, only dissociation was found to positively predict COVID-19 denialism. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of the present study suggested that hopelessness could exacerbate a defensive dissociative response that could be associated with greater COVID-19 denialism. Moreover, older and less educated people showed a greater propensity to engage in COVID-19 denialism.

Calls to the anti-violence number in Italy during COVID-19 pandemic: correlation and trend analyses of violence reports during 2020.

PURPOSE: We hypothesized that during the 2020 pandemic there has been a significant change along the year, depending on the SARS-CoV-2 impact on the population and varying difficulties implied in the norms that were adopted to embank the pandemic. Our objectives were to verify how the phenomenon of domestic violence has evolved and changed along 2020, and to clarify if these changes were correlated to the evolution of the pandemic. METHODS: Though the analysis of the number of daily calls from women to the national anti-violence number and the parameters related to COVID-19 pandemic (daily cases, deaths, hospitalizations, and admissions in ICU), a positive correlation was found between daily deaths due to COVID-19 and the number of calls to the anti-violence number, while daily hospitalizations and admissions in ICU negatively correlated with calls of women reporting at the national anti-violence number. RESULTS: The number of daily calls from women reporting at the national anti-violence number positively correlated with the number of quarantined people shifted of 30 days from the beginning of isolation at home, as well. We also analyzed temporal trends of daily calls from women to the national anti-violence number from 25th of February 2020 to 31st of December 2020. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate the importance of an active anti-violence telephone service and may help in developing a strategy to improve anti-violence facilities, especially during crises, such as specific sources of psychological support for women who have survived violence episodes.