Wassif Ghada O, El-Awady Mohamed Y, Nagi Mariam W, Mossad Isis M
Community, Environmental and Occupational Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Aden University, Aden, Yemen.
J Egypt Public Health Assoc. 2025 Apr 29;100(1):8. doi: 10.1186/s42506-025-00191-1.
The COVID-19 pandemic posed a significant threat to public health, particularly mental well-being. Due to the rapid spread of the virus and quarantine restrictions, social media usage increased dramatically. Excessive and unregulated social media use may negatively impact mental health, contributing to heightened feelings of helplessness and anxiety. This study aimed to examine the relationship between the frequency and duration of social media use and symptoms of depression and anxiety among employees at Ain Shams University during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted over 6 months, from September 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, among 405 employees at Ain Shams University. A stratified random sampling method was employed in two stages. First, the university's faculties were categorized into four disciplines: humanities and social sciences, natural sciences, mathematics, statistics, computer science and engineering, and medical and health sciences. Second, two faculties were randomly selected from each discipline to ensure representative sampling. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire, which included the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scales to assess anxiety and depression levels.
A total of 405 participants were enrolled, comprising 203 males and 202 females, with a mean age of 42.15 ± 10.72 years (range: 20.00-59.00). The majority (77%) held a university degree, and 68.9% were married. A history of COVID-19 infection was reported by 38.3% of participants, and 78.8% used social media to stay updated about the pandemic. Approximately, half of the participants accessed social media three to four times per day, spending an average of 2 to 3 h daily. According to the PHQ-9 scale, 40.7% of employees who accessed social media six or more times per day experienced severe depression symptoms. Similarly, based on the GAD-7 scale, 41.6% of employees who accessed social media six or more times daily reported severe anxiety symptoms.
The findings suggest a concerning association between frequent COVID-19-related social media exposure and symptoms of depression and anxiety. These results highlight the potential mental health risks associated with excessive social media use, emphasizing the need for mental health awareness programs and strategies to combat misinformation during crises.
新冠疫情对公众健康，尤其是心理健康构成了重大威胁。由于病毒的快速传播和隔离限制，社交媒体的使用大幅增加。过度且无节制地使用社交媒体可能会对心理健康产生负面影响，导致无助感和焦虑感加剧。本研究旨在调查新冠疫情期间艾因夏姆斯大学员工的社交媒体使用频率和时长与抑郁及焦虑症状之间的关系。
于2021年9月1日至2022年3月31日的6个月期间，对艾因夏姆斯大学的405名员工开展了一项横断面分析研究。采用两阶段分层随机抽样方法。首先，将该大学的学院分为四个学科类别：人文与社会科学、自然科学、数学、统计学、计算机科学与工程，以及医学与健康科学。其次，从每个学科类别中随机选取两个学院以确保抽样具有代表性。使用结构化问卷收集数据，该问卷包括广泛性焦虑障碍量表（GAD - 7）和患者健康问卷量表（PHQ - 9），用于评估焦虑和抑郁水平。
共纳入405名参与者，其中男性203名，女性202名，平均年龄为42.15±10.72岁（范围：20.00 - 59.00）。大多数人（77%）拥有大学学位，68.9%已婚。38.3%的参与者报告有新冠感染史，78.8%的人使用社交媒体来了解疫情动态。大约一半的参与者每天使用社交媒体三到四次，平均每天花费2至3小时。根据PHQ - 9量表，每天使用社交媒体六次或更多次的员工中，40.7%有严重抑郁症状。同样，根据GAD - 7量表，每天使用社交媒体六次或更多次的员工中，41.6%报告有严重焦虑症状。
研究结果表明，频繁接触与新冠疫情相关的社交媒体与抑郁和焦虑症状之间存在令人担忧的关联。这些结果凸显了过度使用社交媒体带来的潜在心理健康风险，强调了在危机期间开展心理健康意识项目及应对错误信息的策略的必要性。
