Menculini, Giulia;
Albert, Umberto;
Bianchini, Valeria;
Carmassi, Claudia;
Carrà, Giuseppe;
Cirulli, Francesca;
Dell'Osso, Bernardo;
... Tortorella, Alfonso; + view all
(2022)
Did we learn something positive out of the COVID-19 pandemic? Post-traumatic growth and mental health in the general population.
European Psychiatry
, 64
(1)
, Article e79. 10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.2263.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: When facing a traumatic event, some people may experience positive changes, defined as posttraumatic growth (PTG). METHODS: Understanding the possible positive consequences of the pandemic on the individual level is crucial for the development of supportive psychosocial interventions. The present paper aims to: 1) evaluate the levels of PTG in the general population; 2) to identify predictors of each dimension of post-traumatic growth. RESULTS: The majority of the sample (67%, N = 13,889) did not report any significant improvement in any domain of PTG. Participants reported the highest levels of growth in the dimension of “appreciation of life” (2.3 ± 1.4), while the lowest level was found in the “spiritual change” (1.2 ± 1.2). Female participants reported a slightly higher level of PTG in areas of personal strength (p < .002) and appreciation for life (p < .007) compared to male participants, while no significant association was found with age. At the multivariate regression models, weighted for the propensity score, only the initial week of lockdown (between 9-15 April) had a negative impact on the dimension of “relating to others” (B = −.107, 95% CI = −.181 to −.032, p < .005), while over time no other effects were found. The duration of exposure to lockdown measures did not influence the other dimensions of PTG. CONCLUSIONS: The assessment of the levels of PTG is of great importance for the development of ad hoc supportive psychosocial interventions. From a public health perspective, the identification of protective factors is crucial for developing ad-hoc tailored interventions and for preventing the development of full-blown mental disorders in large scale.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Did we learn something positive out of the COVID-19 pandemic? Post-traumatic growth and mental health in the general population |
| Location: | England |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.2263 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.2263 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited. |
| Keywords: | Pandemic; trauma; post-traumatic growth; resilience; mental health |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Division of Psychiatry |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10161251 |
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