Predictors of Anxiety in the COVID-19 Pandemic from a Global Perspective: Data from 23 Countries

Valentina N. Burkova, Marina L. Butovskaya, Ashley K. Randall, Julija N. Fedenok, Khodabakhsh Ahmadi, Ahmad M. Alghraibeh, Fathil Bakir Mutsher Allami, Fadime Suata Alpaslan, Mohammad Ahmad Abdelaziz Al-Zu’bi, Derya Fatma Biçer, Hakan Cetinkaya, Oana Alexandra David, Silvia Donato, Seda Dural, Paige Erickson, Alexey M. Ermakov, Berna Ertuğrul, Emmanuel Abiodun Fayankinnu, Maryanne L. Fisher, Lauren Hocker, Ivana Hromatko, Elena Kasparova, Alexander Kavina, Yahya M. Khatatbeh, Hareesol Khun-Inkeeree, Kai M. Kline, Fırat Koç, Vladimir Kolodkin, Melanie MacEacheron, Irma Rachmawati Maruf, Norbert Meskó, Ruzan Mkrtchyan, Poppy Setiawati Nurisnaeny, Oluyinka Ojedokun, Damilola Adebayo, Mohd S. B. Omar-Fauzee, Barış Özener, Edna Lúcia Tinoco Ponciano, Muhammad Rizwan, Agnieszka Sabiniewicz, Victoriya I. Spodina, Stanislava Stoyanova, Nachiketa Tripathi, Satwik Upadhyay, Carol Weisfeld, Mohd Faiz Mohd Yaakob, Mat Rahimi Yusof and Raushaniia I. Zinurova
Additional contact information
Valentina N. Burkova: Center of Cross-Cultural Psychology and Human Ethology, Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
Marina L. Butovskaya: Center of Cross-Cultural Psychology and Human Ethology, Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
Ashley K. Randall: Counseling and Counseling Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Julija N. Fedenok: Center of Cross-Cultural Psychology and Human Ethology, Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
Khodabakhsh Ahmadi: Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 19395-5478, Iran
Ahmad M. Alghraibeh: Department of Psychology, King Saud University, Riyadh 2458, Saudi Arabia
Fathil Bakir Mutsher Allami: Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Misan, Amarah, Maysan 62001, Iraq
Fadime Suata Alpaslan: Department of Anthropology, İstanbul University, İstanbul 34452, Turkey
Mohammad Ahmad Abdelaziz Al-Zu’bi: Department of Early Childhood, Faculty of Educational Sciences, Zarqa University, Zarqa City 5468, Jordan
Derya Fatma Biçer: Department of Business Administration, Sivas Cumhuriyet University, Sivas 58140, Turkey
Hakan Cetinkaya: Department of Psychology, Ankara University, Ankara 06100, Turkey
Oana Alexandra David: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Babes-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, Cluj-Napoca 400015, Romania
Silvia Donato: Department of Psychology, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan 20123, Italy
Seda Dural: Department of Psychology, Izmir University of Economics, İzmir 35330, Turkey
Paige Erickson: Department of Psychology, University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, MI 48221-3038, USA
Alexey M. Ermakov: Faculty of Bioengineering and Veterinary Medicine, Don State Technical University, 344000 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
Berna Ertuğrul: Department of Anthropology, İstanbul University, İstanbul 34452, Turkey
Emmanuel Abiodun Fayankinnu: Department of Sociology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko 001, Nigeria
Maryanne L. Fisher: Department of Psychology, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, NS B3H 3C3, Canada
Lauren Hocker: Counseling and Counseling Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Ivana Hromatko: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Elena Kasparova: Department of Pedagogy and Problems of Education Development, Belarusian State University, 220030 Minsk, Belarus
Alexander Kavina: Department of History, St John’s University of Tanzania, Dodoma 47, Tanzania
Yahya M. Khatatbeh: Department of Psychology, Imam Muhammad Bin Saud Islamic University, Riyadh 5701, Saudi Arabia
Hareesol Khun-Inkeeree: School of Languages and General Education, Walailak University, Thasala District, Nakhon si Thammarat 80160, Thailand
Kai M. Kline: Counseling and Counseling Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Fırat Koç: Department of Anthropology, Hitit University, Çorum 19030, Turkey
Vladimir Kolodkin: Faculty of Media Communications and Multimediatechnology, Don State Technical University, 344000 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
Melanie MacEacheron: School of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Irma Rachmawati Maruf: Post Graduate Notary Law Program, Pasundan University, Bandung West Java 40113, Indonesia
Norbert Meskó: Department for General and Evolutionary Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Pécs, 7624 Pécs, Hungary
Ruzan Mkrtchyan: Faculty of History, Department of Cultural Studies, Yerevan State University, 0025 Yerevan, Armenia
Poppy Setiawati Nurisnaeny: State Intelligence College, Bogor 16001, Indonesia
Oluyinka Ojedokun: Department of Pure & Applied Psychology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko 01, Nigeria
Damilola Adebayo: Department of Pure & Applied Psychology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko 01, Nigeria
Mohd S. B. Omar-Fauzee: School of Education, Universiti Utara Malaysia, UUM Sintok, Kedah 06010, Malaysia
Barış Özener: Department of Anthropology, İstanbul University, İstanbul 34452, Turkey
Edna Lúcia Tinoco Ponciano: Institute of Psychology and Center of Social Studies, University of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 20943-000, Brazil
Muhammad Rizwan: Department of Psychology, University of Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 22620, Pakistan
Agnieszka Sabiniewicz: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Smell and Taste Clinic TU Dresden, 01069 Dresden, Germany
Victoriya I. Spodina: Department of History and Ethnology, Ob-Ugric Institute of Applied Researches and Development, 628011 Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia
Stanislava Stoyanova: Department of Psychology, South-West University “Neofit Rilski”, 2700 Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria
Nachiketa Tripathi: Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati, Assam 781 039, India
Satwik Upadhyay: Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati, Assam 781 039, India
Carol Weisfeld: Department of Psychology, University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, MI 48221-3038, USA
Mohd Faiz Mohd Yaakob: School of Education and Modern Languages, University Utara Malaysia, Sintok, Kedah 06010, Malaysia
Mat Rahimi Yusof: School of Education and Modern Languages, University Utara Malaysia, Sintok, Kedah 06010, Malaysia
Raushaniia I. Zinurova: Institute of Innovation Management, Kazan National Research Technological University, 420015 Kazan, Russia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 7, 1-23

Abstract: Prior and ongoing COVID-19 pandemic restrictions have resulted in substantial changes to everyday life. The pandemic and measures of its control affect mental health negatively. Self-reported data from 15,375 participants from 23 countries were collected from May to August 2020 during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two questionnaires measuring anxiety level were used in this study—the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), and the State Anxiety Inventory (SAI). The associations between a set of social indicators on anxiety during COVID-19 (e.g., sex, age, country, live alone) were tested as well. Self-reported anxiety during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic varied across countries, with the maximum levels reported for Brazil, Canada, Italy, Iraq and the USA. Sex differences of anxiety levels during COVID-19 were also examined, and results showed women reported higher levels of anxiety compared to men. Overall, our results demonstrated that the self-reported symptoms of anxiety were higher compared to those reported in general before pandemic. We conclude that such cultural dimensions as individualism/collectivism, power distance and looseness/tightness may function as protective adaptive mechanisms against the development of anxiety disorders in a pandemic situation.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; SARS-CoV-2 infection; anxiety; stress; cross-cultural; individualism; collectivism; power distance; looseness; tightness (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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