Fear of COVID-19 and PTSD: The Protective Function of Problem-Solving Appraisals in Mental Health.

The COVID-19 pandemic was experienced by many people as a major traumatic event, and it contributed to high levels of fear, anxiety, and PTSD. Negative cognitive appraisals have been consistently implicated in the onset and maintenance of psychological distress, but there is far less research on the protective role of adaptive appraisals in mental health outcomes. The current study aimed to address this gap by investigating the role of problem-solving appraisals in the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and PTSD. Participants were students (n = 322) who completed the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, the Problem-Solving Inventory, the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5, and the five-item short version of the trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Participants had a mean age of 26 years (±10.2; range 17-63). The results revealed that problem-solving appraisal mediated the effects of fear of COVID-19 on all the dimensions of PTSD. However, moderated mediation analysis demonstrated that the mediation effect was moderated by anxiety. In this regard, the indirect effects of fear of COVID-19 on PTSD were only significant for respondents with low anxiety levels. Our findings suggest that intervention efforts need to focus on identifying and actively targeting maladaptive appraisals of the problem-solving ability as well as addressing anxiety-related symptoms that may impede coping.

Fear of COVID-19, Perceived Stress, and PTSD: The Serial Mediating Role of Sense of Coherence.

The literature has identified that a sense of coherence plays a protective role in the relationship between adverse events and mental health. The current study examines the role of a sense of coherence (SOC) in the relationship between fear of COVID-19, perceived stress, and dimensions of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Participants (n = 322) were students at a metropolitan university in South Africa who completed the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, the 13-item Sense of Coherence Scale, and the PTSD Checklist. Path analysis was used to conduct a serial mediation analysis. The results show that SOC mediates the relationship between perceived stress and the dimensions of PTSD but does not mediate the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and PTSD. Furthermore, the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and dimensions of PTSD was mediated by serial perceived stress and sense of coherence, supporting the hypothesis that higher levels of fear of COVID-19 leads to higher levels of perceived stress. However, while high levels of fear of COVID-19 increase perceived stress, SOC significantly mediates the subsequent impact on PTSD symptoms.

Validation of the vaccination attitudes examination scale in a South African context in relation to the COVID-19 vaccine: quantifying dimensionality with bifactor indices.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic represented a global public health emergency. Existing studies support the view that vaccination and mass immunization are among the most effective means of containing the outbreak and promoting health. However, negative attitudes toward vaccination and the related vaccine hesitancy among many groups have created a significant barrier to effectively managing the health crisis. Having a valid and reliable tool to assess attitudes toward vaccination remains imperative so that factors underlying vaccine refusal can be identified and public health interventions can be facilitated. The current study examined the psychometric properties of the Vaccination Attitudes Examination Scale (VAX) in South Africa. METHODS: Participants (n = 322) completed the VAX. Confirmatory factor analysis and ancillary bifactor indices were used to examine the hypothesized factor structure (a total scale and four subscales) of the scale. Inter-item correlations, factor loadings, and average variance extracted were used to examine the validity of the scale. Predictive validity was examined by comparing those who had received the COVID-19 vaccine and those who had not. The reliability of the scale was examined in terms of both Cronbach's alpha and composite reliability. RESULTS: Confirmatory factor analysis provided support for the conceptualization of the scale as consisting of a total scale and four subscales, and ancillary bifactor indices indicated that the subscales accounted for a sufficient amount of variance (44%) after the variance explained by the total scale was considered. Overall, the analysis indicated that the scale had satisfactory reliability (alpha and composite reliability = 0.70) and provided evidence for the construct, convergent, and predictive validity of the VAX. CONCLUSIONS: The sound psychometric qualities of the scale, when used in a low- to middle-income country, have the potential to advance research and immunization policy within these settings and facilitate more targeted interventions to promote vaccine uptake.

Job Satisfaction Goes a Long Way: The Mediating Role of Teaching Satisfaction in the Relationship between Role Stress and Indices of Psychological Well-Being in the Time of COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its containment measures has resulted in drastic changes in the educational landscape. Teachers had to rapidly adapt to shifts in their work-related roles and responsibilities. This situation likely led to role stress and affected the levels of job satisfaction, mental health and general life satisfaction. In this study, we examined the role of teachers' job satisfaction in the relationship between role stress and indices of psychological well-being. The participants were South African school teachers (N = 355) who completed the Role Orientation Questionnaire, the Teaching Satisfaction Scale, the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, the trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. In addition to descriptive statistics and correlations, path analysis was performed to determine the mediating role of teaching satisfaction. Increased levels of teaching satisfaction were associated with decreased levels of depression and anxiety and increased levels of life satisfaction. Teaching satisfaction also mediated the relationship between role conflict, as well as role ambiguity and anxiety. The results indicated that teaching satisfaction is a critical protective factor for teachers. Thus, improving task significance and enhancing the meaning associated with the teaching profession may help promote the adaptive functioning of teachers.

The Beneficial Effects of Professional Identity: The Mediating Role of Teaching Identification in the Relationship between Role Stress and Psychological Distress during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers and students rapidly transitioned to remote teaching and learning. In South Africa, this initial transition was followed by periods of reopening and closing of schools during the various waves of the pandemic. When schools were reopened, rotational schooling was implemented, with students attending in shifts. All this change created a climate of uncertainty for teachers. The current study investigates the relationship between role stress and indices of psychological distress, as well as the potential mediating role of teaching identification in this relationship, using a cross-sectional survey design. Participants (n = 355) were school teachers in South Africa who completed the Role Stress Questionnaire, the Professional Identification Scale, the trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Beck Hopelessness Scale during the second wave of the pandemic (May-July 2021). The results of a structural equation analysis indicate significant positive direct effects of role conflict and ambiguity on anxiety and hopelessness, as well as significant negative direct effects of teaching identification on anxiety and hopelessness. In addition, teaching identification was found to mediate the effect of role conflict and ambiguity on anxiety and hopelessness. The demonstrated role of teaching identification has implications that suggest the importance of leadership and supervisory support, as well as enhancing the societal value of teaching as a profession.

Perceived Vulnerability to Disease and the Relationship with Teacher Satisfaction in South Africa during COVID-19: The Serial Role of Burnout, Role Conflict, and Ambiguity.

Teachers' work roles and responsibilities have changed dramatically because of the COVID-19 pandemic. These unprecedented changes have the potential to generate role stress and burnout and reduce teachers' job satisfaction. This study investigated the serial relationship between perceived vulnerability to disease, role stress, burnout, and teaching satisfaction. It was hypothesised that individuals who perceive themselves to be at high risk of contracting COVID-19 would report high role conflict and ambiguity in the workplace, which would in turn lead to high levels of burnout and low satisfaction with teaching. Participants were schoolteachers (N = 355) who completed the Perceived Vulnerability to Disease Questionnaire, the Role Orientation Questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and the Teaching Satisfaction Scale. Path analysis confirmed that perceived vulnerability to disease was associated with role conflict and ambiguity, which was in turn associated with emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation, and low teaching satisfaction. Teachers who appraised themselves as being more vulnerable to contracting COVID-19 experienced greater role stress, which was associated with high levels of burnout and low teaching satisfaction. This study highlights that threat appraisals related to contracting COVID-19 represent an additional job demand and this needs to be matched by job resources that can facilitate coping.

Validation of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10 in South Africa: Item Response Theory and Classical Test Theory.

Purpose: During times of crisis, and in particular during the current COVID-19 pandemic, resistance resources, such as resilience, are key to managing the negative impacts of the crisis. The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10 has been extensively used to assess resilience. In the current study, we examined the reliability, validity and dimensionality of this instrument using Rasch analysis, Mokken analysis and classical test theory. Using both item response theory and classical test theory provides a more comprehensive overview of the psychometric properties of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10. Participants and Methods: School teachers from South Africa (N = 355) constituted the sample for the study and they completed the following scales: Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10, the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait Scale, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, and the Sense of Coherence Scale. Results: Both item response theory and classical test theory provided strong evidence for the reliability and validity of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10. In addition, the analyses provided support for considering the scale as essentially unidimensional. Conclusion: The obtained results provide additional support for the reliability and validity, of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale-10 for samples from diverse contexts.

The Health-Sustaining, Moderating, and Mediating Roles of Sense of Coherence in the Relationship between Fear of COVID-19 and Burnout among South African Teachers.

The current study focuses on the interrelationship between fear of COVID-19, sense of coherence, and burnout. Participants (n = 355) were school teachers from across all provinces in South Africa who completed the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, the Sense of Coherence Scale, and the Maslach Burnout Inventory. It was hypothesized that the dimensions of sense of coherence would be directly associated with burnout and would also mediate or moderate the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and burnout. The results of the path and moderation analyses conducted confirmed this hypothesis. In particular, the health-sustaining role of sense of coherence was demonstrated through the significant direct associations between comprehensibility and manageability on one hand and emotional exhaustion, as well as depersonalization, on the other hand. In addition, meaningfulness had significant direct associations with emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment. Meaningfulness mediated the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and all burnout subscales, while comprehensibility and manageability only mediated the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and both emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. However, comprehensibility and manageability played a moderating role in the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and personal accomplishment. These findings confirm the crucial role of protective factors, such as sense of coherence, and highlights the need for interventions that could strengthen these resources within teachers.