Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Language

English

Publication Date

1-1-2024

Journal

Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology

DOI

10.1007/s00127-023-02518-9

PMID

37314492

PMCID

PMC10719422

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

1-1-2025

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Author MSS

Abstract

Purpose: Mental health trajectories during the COVID-19 pandemic have been examined in Veterans with tenuous social connections, i.e., those with recent homelessness (RHV) or a psychotic disorder (PSY), and in control Veterans (CTL). We test potential moderating effects on these trajectories by psychological factors that may help individuals weather the socio-emotional challenges associated with the pandemic (i.e., 'psychological strengths').

Methods: We assessed 81 PSY, 76 RHV, and 74 CTL over 5 periods between 05/2020 and 07/2021. Mental health outcomes (i.e., symptoms of depression, anxiety, contamination concerns, loneliness) were assessed at each period, and psychological strengths (i.e., a composite score based on tolerance of uncertainty, performance beliefs, coping style, resilience, perceived stress) were assessed at the initial assessment. Generalized models tested fixed and time-varying effects of a composite psychological strengths score on clinical trajectories across samples and within each group.

Results: Psychological strengths had a significant effect on trajectories for each outcome (ps < 0.05), serving to ameliorate changes in mental health symptoms. The timing of this effect varied across outcomes, with early effects for depression and anxiety, later effects for loneliness, and sustained effects for contamination concerns. A significant time-varying effect of psychological strengths on depressive symptoms was evident in RHV and CTL, anxious symptoms in RHV, contamination concerns in PSY and CTL, and loneliness in CTL (ps < 0.05).

Conclusion: Across vulnerable and non-vulnerable Veterans, presence of psychological strengths buffered against exacerbations in clinical symptoms. The timing of the effect varied across outcomes and by group.

Keywords

Humans, Mental Health, Pandemics, Veterans, COVID-19, Emotions, Anxiety, Depression, Resilience, COVID-19, Stress, Adaptive coping, Intolerance of uncertainty, Defeatist performance beliefs, Psychosis, Homelessness

Published Open-Access

yes

Download

Share

COinS
 
 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.