Flesia Luca, Monaro Merylin, Mazza Cristina, Fietta Valentina, Colicino Elena, Segatto Barbara, Roma Paolo
Associazione Novilunio Onlus, 35020 Ponte San Nicolò (PD), Italy.
Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy.
J Clin Med. 2020 Oct 19;9(10):3350. doi: 10.3390/jcm9103350.
The global SARS-CoV-2 outbreak and subsequent lockdown had a significant impact on people's daily lives, with strong implications for stress levels due to the threat of contagion and restrictions to freedom. Given the link between high stress levels and adverse physical and mental consequences, the COVID-19 pandemic is certainly a global public health issue. In the present study, we assessed the effect of the pandemic on stress levels in = 2053 Italian adults, and characterized more vulnerable individuals on the basis of sociodemographic features and stable psychological traits. A set of 18 psycho-social variables, generalized regressions, and predictive machine learning approaches were leveraged. We identified higher levels of perceived stress in the study sample relative to Italian normative values. Higher levels of distress were found in women, participants with lower income, and participants living with others. Higher rates of emotional stability and self-control, as well as a positive coping style and internal locus of control, emerged as protective factors. Predictive learning models identified participants with high perceived stress, with a sensitivity greater than 76%. The results suggest a characterization of people who are more vulnerable to experiencing high levels of stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. This characterization may contribute to early and targeted intervention strategies.
全球新冠病毒（SARS-CoV-2）疫情爆发及随后的封锁措施对人们的日常生活产生了重大影响，由于传染威胁和行动自由受限，人们的压力水平受到了很大影响。鉴于高压力水平与不良身心后果之间的联系，新冠疫情无疑是一个全球公共卫生问题。在本研究中，我们评估了疫情对2053名意大利成年人压力水平的影响，并根据社会人口学特征和稳定的心理特质对更易受影响的个体进行了特征描述。我们运用了一组18个心理社会变量、广义回归和预测性机器学习方法。相对于意大利的标准值，我们发现研究样本中的感知压力水平更高。女性、低收入参与者以及与他人同住的参与者的苦恼水平更高。更高的情绪稳定性和自我控制水平，以及积极的应对方式和内控点成为了保护因素。预测性学习模型识别出了感知压力高的参与者，灵敏度大于76%。研究结果表明了在新冠疫情期间更易经历高压力水平人群的特征。这一特征描述可能有助于制定早期和有针对性的干预策略。
