Health Condition and Test Availability as Predictors of Adults’ Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Abstract
Background
Research identifying adults’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic relies solely on demographic predictors without examining adults’ health status during the COVID-19 pandemic as a potential predictor.
Methods
An online survey of 669 adults in Malaysia was conducted during May 2–8, 2020, six weeks after a Movement Control Order (MCO) was issued.
Findings
Adults’ health condition had curvilinear relationships (horizontally reversed J-shaped) with insomnia, anxiety, depression and distress. Reported test availability for COVID-19 (from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”) also had curvilinear relationships (horizontally reversed J-shaped) with anxiety and depression. Younger adults reported worse mental health, but people from various religions and ethnic groups did not differ significantly in reported mental health.
Interpretation
Adults with worse health conditions had more mental health problems, especially adults at the lower end of the health spectrum. Test availability negatively predicted anxiety and depression, especially for adults experiencing poor COVID-19 test availability. The significant predictions of health condition and COVID-19 test availability suggest a new direction for the literature to identify psychiatric risk factors directly from health related variables during a pandemic.
Funding
Tsinghua University-INDITEX Sustainable Development Fund (Project No. TISD201904).
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