Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, Shanghai, China.
School of Social Work, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA.
Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2020 Dec;35(12):1458-1465. doi: 10.1002/gps.5430. Epub 2020 Oct 14.
Since the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak started in late 2019, the older population has accounted for a large proportion of severe and fatal cases. This study investigated the mental state and attitudes of older Chinese adults during this epidemic.
Cross-sectional online surveys on a convenience sample of China's general population at two different time points. Online surveys were disseminated through popular Chinese social media applications. Adults 18 or older living in China during the initial (N = 1148) and second stages (N = 470) were included in the survey. The Worries, Strategies, and Confidence Questionnaire was created to assess worries and awareness of the disease.
Combined responses (N = 1618), 76.1% were female and about 7.0% were 60 years or above. In the first wave, older adults were found less likely to worry about being infected by COVID-19 (p < 0.05) and reported less attention paid to protective measures (p = 0.004) than young adults. However, as the disease evolved, older participants in the second wave were more worried than young adults (p = 0.027) and older adults in the first wave (p = 0.001).
During the epidemic of COVID-19, watchfulness of the epidemic among older Chinese adults fluctuated over time. Initially, they were slow to respond proactively, but their worries gradually increased. Health care and social service professionals need to address the vulnerabilities of older adults to this public health crisis.
自 2019 年末新型冠状病毒病（COVID-19）爆发以来，老年人口在重症和死亡病例中占很大比例。本研究调查了在此期间中国老年成年人的精神状态和态度。
在两个不同时间点，对中国普通人群的便利样本进行横断面在线调查。在线调查通过中国流行的社交媒体应用程序传播。在 COVID-19 初始阶段（N=1148）和第二阶段（N=470）居住在中国的 18 岁或以上成年人被纳入调查。采用担忧、策略和信心问卷评估对疾病的担忧和认识。
共纳入 1618 例（N=1618），76.1%为女性，约 7.0%为 60 岁及以上。在第一波中，与年轻人相比，老年人不太担心感染 COVID-19（p＜0.05），且对防护措施的关注度较低（p=0.004）。然而，随着疾病的发展，第二波中老年人比年轻人（p=0.027）和第一波中的老年人（p=0.001）更担心。
在 COVID-19 疫情期间，中国老年成年人对疫情的警惕性随时间波动。最初，他们反应缓慢，不够主动，但他们的担忧逐渐增加。医疗保健和社会服务专业人员需要解决老年人对这一公共卫生危机的脆弱性。
