Association of Social Capital and Locus of Control with Perceived Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan

Mitsuru Mori, Toshiaki Seko and Shunichi Ogawa
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Mitsuru Mori: Department of Health Science, Hokkaido Chitose College of Rehabilitation, 2-10, Satomi, Chitose 066-0055, Japan
Toshiaki Seko: Department of Health Science, Hokkaido Chitose College of Rehabilitation, 2-10, Satomi, Chitose 066-0055, Japan
Shunichi Ogawa: Department of Health Science, Hokkaido Chitose College of Rehabilitation, 2-10, Satomi, Chitose 066-0055, Japan

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 15, 1-9

Abstract: Previous studies have indicated that social capital and locus of control influence mental health. Accordingly, we investigated the effect of social capital and locus of control on perceived physical and mental health in the general Japanese population during the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to conduct a cross-sectional study, in 2021, three thousand citizens were randomly selected from the Chitose City Resident Register according to ten strata of sex and age classes between 30 years and 79 years. Because thirteen persons moved away from the city, the survey was conducted for the remaining 2987 citizens. A total of 1430 citizens (712 males, 718 females) responded to the survey with their written informed consent (response rate, 47.9%). As a result, social capital measured three dimensions, namely social support, social participation, and trust and reciprocity, and internal locus of control was significantly inversely associated with it, but external locus of control was significantly positively associated with impaired physical and mental health in male and female subjects after adjustment of lifestyle habits and lifestyle change affected by the pandemic. Strengthening social capital and internal locus of control, and weakening external locus of control, may improve physical and mental health, even if the pandemic would bring about distress. Further longitudinal study is needed to examine the causal relationship among them.

Keywords: social capital; locus of control; COVID-19; perceived health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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