COVID-19-related social isolation and symptoms of depression and anxiety in young men in Poland: Does insomnia mediate the relationship?

The need for physical distancing due to COVID-19 mitigation efforts forced prolonged social isolation, which may affect sleep and lead to mental health problems. Previous research has shown that young adults are particularly vulnerable to psychological stress caused by social isolation, the negative psychological impact of the pandemic, and greater frequency and severity of sleep problems. Therefore, the main goal of the present study was to examine whether insomnia could constitute a mediation mechanism that explains the relationship between social isolation experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic and mental health outcomes (depression and anxiety) reported up to 1.5 years later. The study was conducted among young (M±SD; 24.08±3.75) men (N = 1025) in Poland. Data were collected by means of self-report questionnaires, including The Social Isolation Index, The Athens Insomnia Scale, The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S) and Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI-II). The results show that insomnia mediates the relationships between social isolation and both anxiety and depression. The current findings emphasize the role of insomnia in the relationships between social isolation experienced during COVID-19 and negative emotional states. From a clinical perspective, the results suggest that implementing therapeutic components that address social isolation in insomnia treatment programs may prevent the development of depression and anxiety symptoms among young men.

Emotion regulation strategies and mental health symptoms during COVID-19: the mediating role of insomnia.

OBJECTIVES: COVID-19 has become a major source of stress for people around the world. Stressful life events play a role in the pathogenesis of sleep disorders such as insomnia which is considered a risk factor for anxiety and depression. Emotion regulation is an important factor linked with sleep and mental health problems. Therefore, the main goal of the present study was to examine whether insomnia could constitute a mediation mechanism that explains the relationship between emotion regulation strategies (rumination, reappraisal, suppression) and stress-induced mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted among young (M±SD 24.8±2.24) individuals (N = 281, 85.4% women) during the time of the third wave of infections in Poland. Data were collected by means of selfreport questionnaires, including the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire; Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire; Athens Insomnia Scale; Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale. The direct and indirect effects of emotion regulation strategies on depression, anxiety, and stress were calculated using a bootstrap estimation technique. RESULTS: All analyzed indirect effects were significant. The results show that insomnia mediates the relationships between all 3 emotion regulation strategies and stress, anxiety and depression. CONCLUSIONS: The presented results shed the light on the role of insomnia on the relationships between emotion regulation strategies and emotional states experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the present study suggests that educational and therapeutic interventions aimed at improving emotion regulation might be useful for improving symptoms of insomnia and, through it, symptoms of affective disorders. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2023;36(1):151-59.

Differences in psychological distress, resilience and cognitive emotional regulation strategies in adults during the Coronavirus pandemic: A cross-cultural study of Poland and Spain

Background. The objective of this cross-cultural study was to analyze the differences in resilience, cognitive emotion regulation strategies (CERS), as well as psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic between Poland and Spain. Method. An online survey was conducted on a sample of 1,182 adults. A MANOVA analysis was carried out to examine the differences in the studied variables between these countries. This was followed by MANCOVA analysis to control for gender and age. Linear regression analyses segmented by country were conducted in order to identify psychological distress prediction models. Results. Polish population was characterized by higher levels of anxiety, less resilience and more maladaptive CERS during the lockdown. Spanish population was more affected by stress but used more adaptable CERS and was more resilient. Age and female gender appeared as risk factors of psychological distress in Spain. The psychological distress prediction models were found to be different between both countries: adaptive CERS was predictive only in Spain, and resilience was predictive only in Poland. Conclusions. This study could guide in initiatives for the promotion of psychological well-being as a way to prevent psychopathological disorders during the pandemic. (English) [ FROM AUTHOR] Antecedentes. El objetivo de este estudio transcultural fue analizar las diferencias en resiliencia, estrategias de regulación cognitiva de las emociones (CERS) y distress psicológico durante la pandemia del COVID-19 en Polonia y España. Método. Se realizó una encuesta online en una muestra de 1,182 adultos. Se llevó a cabo un análisis MANOVA para examinar las diferencias en las variables estudiadas entre estos países. Esto fue seguido de un análisis MANCOVA controlando el sexo y la edad. Se realizaron análisis de regresión lineal segmentados por país con el fin de identificar modelos predictivos de distrés psicológico. Resultados. La población polaca se caracterizó por niveles más altos de ansiedad, menos resiliencia y más uso de CERS desadaptativas durante el confinamiento. La población española sufrió más estrés pero utilizó CERS adaptativas y fue más resiliente. La edad y el sexo femenino aparecieron como factores de riesgo de malestar psicológico en España. Se encontró que los modelos de predicción de distrés psicológico fueron diferentes en ambos países: las CERS adaptativas fueron predictivas en España y la resiliencia fue predictiva en Polonia. Conclusiones. Este estudio podría guiar en iniciativas para la promoción del bienestar psicológico como vía para prevenir trastornos psicopatológicos durante la pandemia. (Spanish) [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Anales de Psicología is the property of Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Murcia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Cognitive emotion regulation strategies mediate the relationships between Dark Triad traits and negative emotional states experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 has become a major source of stress as it puts individuals at risk of a range of mental health problems. Personality traits may predispose people to use adaptive or maladaptive coping strategies that lead to different health-related outcomes. The goal of the present study was to examine whether the use of distinct coping strategies during this stressful COVID-19 outbreak mediates the relationships between Dark Triad (DT) traits and stress, depression, and anxiety. The study was conducted in Poland (N = 1086) and Spain (N = 582), thus cross-culturally validated measures were used to assess depression, anxiety and stress (DASS-21), cognitive emotion regulation strategies (CERQ) and socially aversive traits covered by DT (Dirty Dozen scale). The study shows that maladaptive CERS mediates the relationships between narcissism/Machiavellianism and stress, anxiety and depression. Additionally, adaptive CERS mediates the relationship between psychopathy and depression. The results provide a better understanding of the mediating role of CERS on the relationships between DT traits and the stress, anxiety and depression experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic.