COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress as a Function of Age and Gender in a Spanish Sample

María Pilar Jiménez, Jennifer A. Rieker, José Manuel Reales and Soledad Ballesteros
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María Pilar Jiménez: Departamento de Psicología Básica II, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, C/Juan del Rosal 10, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Jennifer A. Rieker: Departamento de Psicología Básica II, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, C/Juan del Rosal 10, 28040 Madrid, Spain
José Manuel Reales: Departamento de Metodología para las Ciencias Sociales, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, C/Juan del Rosal 10, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Soledad Ballesteros: Departamento de Psicología Básica II, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, C/Juan del Rosal 10, 28040 Madrid, Spain

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 10, 1-15

Abstract: The sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly altered the daily lives of the population with dramatic effects caused not only by the health risks of the coronavirus, but also by its psychological and social impact in large sectors of the worldwide population. The present study adapted the COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index (CPDI) to the Spanish population, and 1094 Spanish adults (mean age 52.55 years, 241 males) completed the Spanish version in a cross-sectional online survey. To analyze the factorial structure and reliability of the CPDI, we performed an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) followed by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on the Spanish sample. The effects of gender and age on the degree of distress were analyzed using the factorial scores of the CPDI as the dependent variables. Results showed that, after rotation, the first factor ( Stress symptoms ) accounted for 35% of the total variance and the second factor ( COVID-19 information ) for 15%. Around 25% ( n = 279) of the participants experienced mild to moderate distress symptoms, 16% ( n = 179) severe distress, and about 58% ( n = 636) showed no distress symptoms. Women experienced more distress than men ( p < 0.01 ), and distress decreased with age ( p < 0.01 ). We conclude that the CPDI seems a promising screening tool for the rapid detection of potential peritraumatic stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index; cluster analysis; exploratory factor analysis (EFA); confirmatory factor analysis (CFA); age differences; psychological distress; psychological impact (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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