Role of Psychological Flexibility and Social Support Satisfaction on the Mental Health of Young Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic

  • Nihaya Fathima III BSc Psychology, Stella Maris College, Chennai, India.
  • C Sushruthi III BSc Psychology, Stella Maris College, Chennai, India.
  • Divya Dovina T Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Stella Maris College, Chennai, India
Keywords: Depression,  Anxiety,  Stress,  Psychological Flexibility,  Social Support Satisfaction, Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant mental and psychological distress, in addition to its impacts on physical health. Though young adults are at low risk of health complications from
COVID-19, they’re still prone to many psychological problems, during such times marked by uncertainty, ambiguity, and loss of control.
Objectives: This study was undertaken to determine the mental health status of young adults during the pandemic. It also seeks to look at the relationship between psychological flexibility and social support and
the mental health of young adults.
Method: A convenience sampling procedure was used. The questionnaires were circulated through Google Forms among people of the age group 18-35 years. A total of 211 participants completed the study. Depression,
anxiety and stress were measured using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21), and psychological flexibility was measured using the Flexibility subscale of the Multidimensional Psychological Flexibility
Inventory (MPFI), and Social Support Satisfaction was analysed using the Satisfaction subscale of the Sarason Social Support Questionnaire (SSQSR). The data were analysed using the Student t-test and Pearson
Product Moment Correlation.
Results: A significant correlation was found between social support satisfaction, but not psychological flexibility, with the other variables.

How to cite this article:
Fathima N, Sushruthi C, Dovina DT. Role of Psychological Flexibility and Social Support
Satisfaction on the Mental Health of Young Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Ind J Youth Adol
Health. 2022;9(1):11-17.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/2349.2880.202202

References

Arslan G, Yıldırım M, Tanhan A, Buluş M, Allen KA. Coronavirus stress, optimism-pessimism, psychological

inflexibility, and psychological health: psychometric properties of the Coronavirus Stress Measure. Int

JMent Health Addict. 2021;19(6):2423-9. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Nathiya D, Singh P, Suman S, Raj P, Tomar BS. Mental health problems and impact on youth minds during

the COVID-19 outbreak: cross-sectional (RED-COVID) survey. Soc Health Behav. 2020;3(3):83. [Google Scholar]

Shanahan L, Steinhoff A, Bechtiger L, Murray AL, Nivette A, Hepp U, Ribeaud D, Eisner M. Emotional distress in

young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: evidence of risk and resilience from a longitudinal cohort study.

Psychol Med. 2020;52(5):824-33. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Rehman U, Shahnawaz MG, Khan NH, Kharshiing KD, Khursheed M, Gupta K, Kashyap D, Uniyal R. Depression,

anxiety and stress among Indians in times of COVID-19 lockdown. Community Ment Health J. 2021;57(1):42-8.

[PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Verma S, Mishra A. Depression, anxiety, and stress and socio-demographic correlates among general

Indian public during COVID-19. Int J Soc Psychiatry. 2020;66(8):756-62. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Hall RC, Hall RC, Chapman MJ. The 1995 Kikwit Ebola outbreak: lessons hospitals and physicians can

apply to future viral epidemics. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 2008;30(5):446-52. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

McAlonan GM, Lee AM, Cheung V, Cheung C, Tsang KW, Sham PC, Chua SE, Wong JG. Immediate and sustained

psychological impact of an emerging infectious disease outbreak on health care workers. Can J Psychiatry.

;52(4):241-7. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Driven [Internet]. DASS 21: Depression Anxiety & Stress Scale; 2022 [cited 2022 Mar 17]. Available from:https://

home.hellodriven.com/articles/dass-21-depressionanxiety-stress-scale-free-online-test/

DeLongis A, Folkman S, Lazarus RS. The impact of daily stress on health and mood: psychological and

social resources as mediators. JPers Soc Psychol. 1988;54(3):486-95. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Wang C, Pan R, Wan X, Tan Y, Xu L, McIntyre RS, Choo FN, Tran B, Ho R, Sharma VK, HoC. A longitudinal study

on the mental health of general population during the COVID-19 epidemic in China. BrainBehavImmun [Internet]. 2020 Jul [cited 2022 Mar 17];87:40-8. Available from:https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0889159120305110 [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Yasin MA, Dzulkifli MA. The relationship between social support and psychological problems among students.

Int JBusi Soc Sci. 2010;1(3):110-6.[GoogleScholar]

Özmete E, Pak M. The relationship between anxiety levels and perceived social support during the pandemic of COVID-19 in Turkey. Soc Work Public Health. 2020;35(7):603-16. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Ye Z, Yang X, Zeng C, Wang Y, Shen Z, Li X, Lin D. Resilience, social support, and coping as mediators

between COVIDâ€19â€related stressful experiences and acute stress disorder among college students in China. ApplPsychol Health WellBeing [Internet]. 2020 Dec [cited 2022 Mar 17];12(4):1074-94. Available from:https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/aphw.12211 [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Grey I, Arora T, Thomas J, Saneh A, Tohme P, Abi-Habib R. The role of perceived social support on depression

and sleep during the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychiatry Res. 2020;293:113452. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Masuda A, Tully EC. The role of mindfulness and psychological flexibility in somatization, depression,

anxiety, and general psychological distress in a nonclinical college sample. J Evidbased Compl Altern

Med. 2011;17(1):66-71. [Google Scholar]

McCracken LM, Badinlou F, Buhrman M, Brocki KC. The role of psychological flexibility in the context of

COVID-19: associations with depression, anxiety, and insomnia. J ContextBehav Sci. 2021;19:28-35. [Google

Scholar]

Lovibond SH,Lovibond PF. (1995) Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales. 2nd Edition,

Psychology Foundation, Sydney. - References - Scientific Research Publishing [Internet]. Scirp.org. 2022 [cited

Mar 17]. Available from:https://www.scirp.org/reference/ReferencesPapers.aspx?Re

Sarason IG, Levine HM, Basham RB, Sarason BR. Assessing social support: The Social Support

Questionnaire. JPers Soc Psychol. 1983;44:127-39. [Google Scholar]

Rolffs JL, Rogge RD, Wilson KG. Disentangling components of flexibility via the Hexaflex Model: development and validation of the Multidimensional Psychological Flexibility Inventory (MPFI). Assessment. 2018;25:458-82.[PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Dombo EA, Ahearn FL. The aftermath of humanitarian crises: amodel for addressing social work interventions with individuals, groups, and communities. Illness Crisis Loss. 2017;25(2):107-26. [Google Scholar]

Prati G, Pietrantoni L. The relation of perceived and received social support to mental health among first

responders: a meta-analytic review. J Community Psychol. 2010;38(3):403-17. [Google Scholar]

Rolffs JL. Understanding the predictive role of psychological flexibility in acceptance and commitment

therapy: baseline flexibility and inflexibility as moderators of treatment effects [dissertation]. University of Rochester ProQuest Dissertations Publishing;2019. [GoogleScholar]

Bonanno GA, Keltner D, Holen A, Horowitz MJ. When avoiding unpleasant emotions might not be such a

bad thing: verbal-autonomic response dissociation and midlife conjugal bereavement. JPers Soc Psychol.

;69(5):975-89. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Liverant GI, Brown TA, Barlow DH, Roemer L. Emotion regulation in unipolar depression: the effects of

acceptance and suppression of subjective emotional experience on the intensity and duration of sadness

and negative affect. Behav ResTher. 2008;46(11):1201-9. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Tamres LK, Janicki D, Helgeson VS. Sex differences in coping behaviour: ameta-analytic review and an

examination of relative coping. Personal SocPsychol Rev. 2002;6(1):2-30. [Google Scholar]

Ozbay F, Johnson DC, Dimoulas E, Morgan CA, Charney D, Southwick S. Social support and resilience to stress:

from neurobiology to clinical practice. Psychiatry (Edgmont) [Internet]. 2007;4(5):35-40. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2921311 [PubMed] [Google Scholar

Published
2022-03-31