COVID-19 fear mediates the relationship between perceived risk and preventive behaviors: the moderating role of perceived effectiveness.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate COVID-19 perceived risk and fear as predictors of preventive behaviors among young adult undergraduates, guided by the Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM). DESIGN: Participants (N = 174;Mage = 21.94, SD = 3.24; 62% Hispanic, 79% women) were recruited from a large public university in Southern California and completed measures at two timepoints over a three-month period. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants self-reported COVID-19 risk, fear, preventive behaviors, and perceived effectiveness. RESULTS: Asymptotic moderated mediation indicated that COVID-19 fear fully mediated the association between perceived risk and preventive behaviors. Greater COVID-19 perceived risk was associated with more fear and, in turn, the engagement in more COVID-19 preventive behaviors. Furthermore, in partial support of the EPPM, participants' perceived effectiveness of preventive behaviors moderated the relationship between fear and preventive behaviors where a significant conditional effect was found among only participants endorsing low levels of perceived effectiveness of preventive behaviors. CONCLUSION: This study offers important implications for future health communication strategies by providing a network of associations that either attenuate or promote the engagement in risk-reducing preventive behaviors among young adult undergraduates. Findings highlight the importance of augmenting undergraduate knowledge on health promotion and illness prevention strategies.

COVID-19 Pandemic Psychological Distress, Multi-Dimensional Social Support, and Mental Health Symptoms Among Hispanic Undergraduates

This study examined the association between COVID-19 psychological distress and mental health symptoms as moderated by social support among 107 Hispanic undergraduates at a large public Hispanic-Serving Institution in Southern California. Results indicated pandemic distress was positively, and social support was negatively, associated with mental health symptoms;social support did not moderate this relationship. Findings signal the need to identify protective factors that buffer mental health symptoms among Hispanic undergraduates during global crises. (English) [ FROM AUTHOR]

Psychometric properties of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale in a US college sample.

This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the 5-item Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) among US undergraduates (N = 212). The CAS demonstrated adequate internal consistencies among the sample. CAS scores correlated in a theoretically consistent manner with the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale-21, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. A confirmatory factor analysis of a single factor solution yielded good model fit after correlating one pair of item residual variances. Findings indicate good reliability and validity of the CAS among US undergraduates.