Anxiety, depression, stress, worry about COVID-19 and fear of loneliness during COVID-19 lockdown in Peru: A network analysis approach.

This study aims to examine the relationships between symptoms of anxiety, depression, stress, worry about COVID-19 and fear of loneliness during COVID-19 lockdown in Peru using network analysis. There were 854 participants aged 18 to 50 years (Mean = 36.54; SD = 9.23); 634 females (74.20%) and 220 males (25.80%), who completed the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), Preoccupation with COVID-19 Contagion (PRE-COVID-19), Brief Scale of Fear of Loneliness (BSFL). A partial unregularized network was estimated through the ggmModSelect function. Expected influence (EI) and bridging EI values were calculated to identify central symptoms and bridging symptoms respectively. The results reveal those two symptoms of depression-stress and anxiety-were the most central symptoms in the network. Depressive symptoms are at the same time the most comorbid and it is shown that there are no differences in the network when compared between those who left home and those who did not leave home during lockdown. Depressive symptoms are concluded to be central and bridging in the network and interconnected with some symptoms of stress and anxiety. These findings may be important to understand the experience of COVID-19 lockdown in Peru.

Does Mindfulness Moderate the Link of Worry About COVID-19 With Adjustment? An Actor-Partner Interdependence Model Approach.

Objectives: COVID-19 constitutes an unprecedented mental health challenge to the world. At this critical time, it is important to identify factors that may boost individuals' well-being or render individuals more resistant to the negative impact of COVID-19-related stressors. The goals of this study were to examine whether individuals' and their partners' worry about COVID-19 were linked to individuals' psychological, social, and cognitive adjustment and test individuals' and their partners' mindfulness as possible moderators. Methods: Cross-sectional, dyadic data were collected from 211 Chinese couples with kindergarten-aged children living in Hong Kong, China, during its fourth major outbreak of COVID-19 (between December 2020 and January 2021). Using paper-and-pencil questionnaires, fathers and mothers independently reported their worry about COVID-19, mindfulness, depressive symptoms, social difficulties, and cognitive problems. Results: Actor-Partner-Interdependence Models revealed that, controlling for individuals' gender and education levels, individuals' worry about COVID-19 and mindfulness were positively and negatively associated with their own depressive symptoms, social difficulties, and cognitive problems, respectively. The worry of individuals' partners was also positively associated with individuals' depressive symptoms and social difficulties. These associations, however, were only significant when the partners had low but not high levels of mindfulness. Conclusions: Our study highlighted the importance of studying the potential benefits of mindfulness at not only the individual but also the dyadic level.