Ray Suman, Goswami Vishwani, Kumar Chandra Mohan
CSIR-National Institute of Science Communication and Policy Research (CSIR-NIScPR), formerly known as National Institute of Science Technology and Development Studies (CSIR-NISTADS), Pusa Gate, K.S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi, 110 012 India.
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, 801507 India.
Curr Psychol. 2022 Feb 4:1-10. doi: 10.1007/s12144-022-02827-3.
The effects of coronavirus are not just physical but also psychological in all age groups and more so common among children. Some children may have had experience of quarantine restrictions during this COVID-19 pandemic. Due to increased digital connections 'emotional contagion' where the distress and fear experienced by one spread to another person may also be common in children. The present study aims to determine whether COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown has caused stress and affected mental health of children and youth. The current study assessed stress in children and youth between 9 and 18 years age based on Short Self-Rating Questionnaire (SSRQ) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study design was an observational study, a descriptive cross-sectional study using online survey. Total 369 schools children participated in the survey. Score Scale and analysis was done to categorize the stress levels as Low, Moderate and Severe. Data analysis based on the total score levels (Delhi+Mathura zone, =369) showed 30.08% (=111) students with Low stress level, 62.87% (=232) within Moderate stress level and 7.08% (=26) with severe stress level. Students T Test revealed that there was a significant difference (≤0.04) of the stress level male vs. female in total (Delhi + Mathura zone combined). However, the stress level was not significantly different between Delhi and Mathura zone alone. It is utmost to give primary importance to address the stress issues in children and adoloscents in the current scenario. Inclusion of Intervention strategies that are empirically supported and culturally appropriate as per the need of the communities for children and families may be helpful.
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-022-02827-3.
冠状病毒的影响不仅体现在身体方面，在所有年龄组中还会影响心理，在儿童中更为常见。在此次新冠疫情期间，一些儿童可能经历过隔离限制。由于数字连接增加，“情绪传染”现象，即一个人所经历的痛苦和恐惧会传染给另一个人，在儿童中也可能很常见。本研究旨在确定新冠疫情和封锁是否给儿童和青少年带来了压力并影响了他们的心理健康。当前研究在新冠疫情期间，基于简易自评问卷（SSRQ）对9至18岁的儿童和青少年的压力进行了评估。该研究设计为一项观察性研究，是一项使用在线调查的描述性横断面研究。共有369名在校儿童参与了调查。通过评分量表和分析将压力水平分为低、中、高三个等级。基于总分水平（德里+马图拉地区，=369）的数据分析显示，30.08%（=111）的学生压力水平低，62.87%（=232）的学生处于中等压力水平，7.08%（=26）的学生压力水平高。学生t检验显示，总体上（德里+马图拉地区合并）男性和女性的压力水平存在显著差异（≤0.04）。然而，仅德里和马图拉地区之间的压力水平没有显著差异。在当前情况下，首要的是高度重视解决儿童和青少年的压力问题。根据社区对儿童和家庭的需求，纳入经实证支持且文化上合适的干预策略可能会有所帮助。
在线版本包含可在10.1007/s12144-022-02827-3获取的补充材料。
