Anxiety about COVID-19 Infection, and Its Relation to Smartphone Addiction and Demographic Variables in Middle Eastern Countries

Mohammad Farhan Al. Qudah, Ismael Salamah Albursan, Heba Ibraheem Hammad, Ahmad Mohammad Alzoubi, Salaheldin Farah Bakhiet, Abdullah M. Almanie, Soltan S. Alenizi, Suliman S. Aljomaa and Mohammed M. Al-Khadher
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Mohammad Farhan Al. Qudah: Department of Psychology, College of Education, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Ismael Salamah Albursan: Department of Psychology, College of Education, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Heba Ibraheem Hammad: Department of Psychology, AL Balqa Applied University Princess Alia College, Amman 11821, Jordan
Ahmad Mohammad Alzoubi: Department of Psychology, College of Humanities and Sciences, Ajman University, Ajman 364, United Arab Emirates
Salaheldin Farah Bakhiet: Department of Special Education, College of Education, King Saud University, Riyadh 11567, Saudi Arabia
Abdullah M. Almanie: Department of Educational Administration, College of Education, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Soltan S. Alenizi: Department of Psychology, College of Education, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Suliman S. Aljomaa: Department of Psychology, College of Education, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Mohammed M. Al-Khadher: Department of Psychology, College of Education, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 21, 1-14

Abstract: This study explores the level and frequency of anxiety about COVID-19 infection in some Middle Eastern countries, and differences in this anxiety by country, gender, workplace, and social status. Another aim was to identify the predictive power of anxiety about COVID-19 infection, daily smartphone use hours, and age in smartphone addiction. The participants were 651 males and females from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt. The participants’ ages ranged between 18 and 73 years (M 33.36, SD = 10.69). A questionnaire developed by the authors was used to examine anxiety about COVID-19 infection. Furthermore, the Italian Smartphone Addiction Inventory was used after being translated, adapted, and validated for the purposes of the present study. The results revealed that the percentages of participants with high, average, and low anxiety about COVID-19 infection were 10.3%, 37.3%, and 52.4%, respectively. The mean scores of anxiety about COVID-19 infection in the four countries were average: Egypt (M = 2.655), Saudi Arabia (M = 2.458), the United Arab Emirates (M = 2.413), and Jordan (M = 2.336). Significant differences in anxiety about COVID-19 infection were found between Egypt and Jordan, in favor of Egypt. Significant gender differences were found in favor of females in the Jordanian and Egyptian samples, and in favor of males in the Emirati sample. No significant differences were found regarding workplace and social status. The results also revealed a significant positive relationship between anxiety about COVID-19 infection, daily smartphone use hours, and age on the one hand, and smartphone addiction on the other. The strongest predictor of smartphone addiction was anxiety about COVID-19 infection, followed by daily use hours. Age did not significantly contribute to the prediction of smartphone addiction. The study findings shed light on the psychological health and cognitive aspects of anxiety about COVID-19 infection and its relation to smartphone addiction.

Keywords: anxiety about COVID-19 infection; COVID-19; frequency; age; smartphone addiction; Middle Eastern countries (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 (1)

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