Emotional consequences of COVID-19 home confinement: The ECLB-COVID19 multicenter study

  1. Achraf Ammar
  2. Patrick Mueller
  3. Khaled Trabelsi
  4. Hamdi Chtourou
  5. Omar Boukhris
  6. Liwa Masmoudi
  7. Bassem Bouaziz
  8. Michael Brach
  9. Marlen Schmicker
  10. Ellen Bentlage
  11. Daniella How
  12. Mona Ahmed
  13. Asma Aloui
  14. Omar Hammouda
  15. Laisa Liane Paineiras-Domingos
  16. Annemarie Braakman-jansen
  17. Christian Wrede
  18. Sophia Bastoni
  19. Carlos Soares Pernambuco
  20. Leonardo Mataruna
  21. Morteza Taheri
  22. Khadijeh Irandoust
  23. Aïmen Khacharem
  24. Nicola L Bragazzi
  25. Karim Chamari
  26. Jordan M Glenn
  27. Nicholas T Bott
  28. Faiez Gargouri
  29. Lotfi Chaari
  30. Hadj Batatia
  31. Gamal Mohamed Ali
  32. Osama Abdelkarim
  33. Mohamed Jarraya
  34. Kais El Abed
  35. Nizar Souissi
  36. Lisette Van Gemert-Pijnen
  37. Stephen J Bailey
  38. Wassim Moalla
  39. Jonathan Gómez-Raja
  40. Monique Epstein
  41. Robbert Sanderman
  42. Sebastian Schulz
  43. Achim Jerg
  44. Ramzi Al-Horani
  45. Taysir Mansi
  46. Mohamed Jmail
  47. Fernando Barbosa
  48. Fernando Santos
  49. Boštjan Šimunič
  50. Rado Pišot
  51. Donald Cowan
  52. Andrea Gaggioli
  53. Jürgen Steinacker
  54. Laurel Riemann
  55. Bryan L Riemann
  56. Notger Mueller
  57. Tarak Driss
  58. Anita Hoekelmann
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Abstract

Background

Public health recommendations and government measures during the COVID-19 pandemic have enforced restrictions on daily living, which may include social distancing, remote work/school, and home confinement. While these measures are imperative to abate the spreading of COVID-19, the impact of these restrictions on mental health and emotional wellbeing is undefined. Therefore, an international online survey was launched on April 6, 2020 in seven languages to elucidate the impact of COVID-19 restrictions on mental health and emotional well-being. This report presents the preliminary results from the first thousand responders on mental wellbeing and mood and feelings questionnaires.

Methods

The ECLB-COVID19 electronic survey was designed by a steering group of multidisciplinary scientists and academics, following a structured review of the literature. The survey was uploaded and shared on the Google online survey platform. Thirty-five research organizations from Europe, North-Africa, Western Asia and the Americas promoted the multi-languages survey through their networks to general society. Of the 64 questions, 7 were from the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (SWEMWBS), and 13 were from the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ), which are both validated instruments.

Results

Analysis was conducted on the first 1047 replies (54% women) from Asia (36%), Africa (40%), Europe (21%) and other (3%). The COVID-19 home confinement had a negative effect on both mental wellbeing and on mood and feelings. Specifically, a significant decrease (p<0.001 and Δ%= 9.4 %) in the total score of mental wellbeing was noted. More individuals (+12.89%) reported a low mental wellbeing “during” compared to “before” home confinement. Furthermore, results from the mood and feelings questionnaire (i.e., depressive symptoms) showed a significant increase by 44.9% (p<0.001) in total score with more people (+10%) developing depressive symptoms “during” compared to “before” home confinement.

Conclusion

The ECLB-COVID19 survey revealed an increased psychosocial strain triggered by the enforced home confinement. To mitigate this high risk of mental disorders and to foster an Active and Healthy Confinement Lifestyle (AHCL), a crisis-oriented interdisciplinary intervention is urgently needed.

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