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Psychological Impact of Health Risk Communication and Social Media on College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Cross-Sectional Study.
Li, Mengyao; Liu, Li; Yang, Yilong; Wang, Yang; Yang, Xiaoshi; Wu, Hui.
  • Li M; China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
  • Liu L; China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
  • Yang Y; China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
  • Wang Y; China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
  • Yang X; China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
  • Wu H; China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
J Med Internet Res ; 22(11): e20656, 2020 11 18.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-934396
ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

The outbreak of COVID-19 began in 2019 and is expected to impact the psychological health of college students. Few studies have investigated the associations among health risk communication, social media, and psychological symptoms during a major pandemic.

OBJECTIVE:

The aim of this research was to assess the prevalence of psychological symptoms among college students and explore their associations with health risk communication and social media.

METHODS:

A web-based survey was distributed through the Wenjuanxing platform among Chinese college students from March 3-15, 2020. In addition to demographics, information on health risk communication and social media was collected, and the Symptom Checklist 90 Phobia and Health Anxiety Inventory subscale was used to assess psychological symptoms among 1676 college students in China. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to examine these independent risk factors.

RESULTS:

The prevalence of panic and health anxiety was 17.2% (288/1676) and 24.3% (408/1676), respectively. Regarding risk communication, understanding the risk of COVID-19 (odds ratio [OR] 0.480, 95% CI 0.367-0.627) was a protective factor against panic. Knowledge of prognosis (OR 0.708, 95% CI 0.551-0.910), preventive measures (OR 0.380, 95% CI 0.195-0.742), and wearing face masks (OR 0.445, 95% CI 0.230-0.862) were shown to be protective factors in predicting health anxiety. Perceived lethality (OR 1.860, 95% CI 1.408-2.459), being affected by the global spread (OR 1.936, 95% CI 1.405-2.669), and impact on social contacts (OR 1.420, 95% CI 1.118-1.802) were identified as significant risk factors associated with health anxiety. In terms of social media, trust in mainstream media (OR 0.613, 95% CI 0.461-0.816) was considered to be a protective factor against health anxiety.

CONCLUSIONS:

There was a high prevalence of psychological symptoms among college students. Health risk communication and social media use were important in predicting psychological symptoms, especially health anxiety. Scientific and evidence-based information should be reported by social media platforms. Web-based consultation and intervention measures should be the focus of future studies.
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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Anxiety / Students / Health Communication / Social Media / SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19 Type of study: Etiology study / Experimental Studies / Observational study / Prognostic study / Randomized controlled trials Limits: Adult / Female / Humans / Male / Young adult Language: English Journal: J Med Internet Res Journal subject: Medical Informatics Year: 2020 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: 20656

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Anxiety / Students / Health Communication / Social Media / SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19 Type of study: Etiology study / Experimental Studies / Observational study / Prognostic study / Randomized controlled trials Limits: Adult / Female / Humans / Male / Young adult Language: English Journal: J Med Internet Res Journal subject: Medical Informatics Year: 2020 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: 20656