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Affective temperament, attachment style, and the psychological impact of the COVID-19 outbreak: an early report on the Italian general population.

ABSTRACT: The outbreak of COVID-19 is severely affecting mental health worldwide, although individual response may vary. This study aims to investigate the psychological distress perceived by the Italian general population during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to analyze affective temperament and adult attachment styles as potential mediators. Through an online survey, we collected sociodemographic and lockdown-related information and evaluated distress, temperament, and attachment using the Kessler 10 Psychological Distress Scale (K10), the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego-Autoquestionnaire short version (TEMPS-A) and the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ). In our sample (n = 500), 62% of the individuals reported no likelihood of psychological distress, whereas 19.4% and 18.6% displayed mild and moderate-to-severe likelihood. Cyclothymic (OR: 1.24; p < 0.001), depressive (OR: 1.52; p < 0.001) and anxious (OR: 1.58; p = 0.002) temperaments, and the ASQ "Need for approval" (OR: 1.08; p = 0.01) were risk factors for moderate-to-severe psychological distress compared to no distress, while the ASQ "Confidence" (OR: 0.89; p = 0.002) and "Discomfort with closeness" were protective (OR: 0.92; p = 0.001). Cyclothymic (OR: 1.17; p = 0.008) and depressive (OR: 1.32; p = 0.003) temperaments resulted as risk factors in subjects with moderate-to-severe psychological distress compared to mild distress, while the ASQ "Confidence" (OR: 0.92; p = 0.039) and "Discomfort with closeness" (OR: 0.94; p = 0.023) were protective. Our data indicated that a relevant rate of individuals may have experienced psychological distress following the COVID-19 outbreak. Specific affective temperament and attachment features predict the extent of mental health burden. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first data available on the psychological impact of the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic on a sizeable sample of the Italian population. Moreover, our study is the first to investigate temperament and attachment characteristics in the psychological response to the ongoing pandemic. Our results provide further insight into developing targeted intervention strategies.

SUBMITTER: Moccia L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7169930 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Affective temperament, attachment style, and the psychological impact of the COVID-19 outbreak: an early report on the Italian general population.

Moccia Lorenzo L Janiri Delfina D Pepe Maria M Dattoli Luigi L Molinaro Marzia M De Martin Valentina V Chieffo Daniela D Janiri Luigi L Fiorillo Andrea A Sani Gabriele G Di Nicola Marco M

Brain, behavior, and immunity 20200420

The outbreak of COVID-19 is severely affecting mental health worldwide, although individual response may vary. This study aims to investigate the psychological distress perceived by the Italian general population during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to analyze affective temperament and adult attachment styles as potential mediators. Through an online survey, we collected sociodemographic and lockdown-related information and evaluated distress, temperament, and attachment using th ...[more]

PMID: 32325098

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Project description:BackgroundMaternal psychological stress during pregnancy, including stress resulting from disasters and trauma, has been linked to temperamental difficulties in offspring. Although heightened cortisol concentrations are often hypothesized as an underlying mechanism, evidence supporting this mechanism is not consistent, potentially because of methodological issues and low stress in the population.AimTo address these issues, this preregistered study investigated the following associations between: 1) prenatal psychological stress and hair cortisol, as a biomarker for chronic stress, during the COVID-19 outbreak (i.e., as a major worldwide psychological stressor), and 2) maternal hair cortisol during the COVID-19 outbreak and later infant temperamental negative affectivity and orienting/regulation. Additionally, we explored whether associations were different for women with low versus high socioeconomic status (SES; maternal education and annual household income) and at different stages of pregnancy.MethodPregnant women (N = 100) filled out online questionnaires during the first COVID-19 lockdown. Six months later, when most mothers were still pregnant or had just given birth, maternal hair samples were collected during home visits. When infants were six months old, mothers reported on their infant's temperament.ResultsAlthough hierarchical regression analyses revealed no associations between prenatal COVID-19 psychological stress and hair cortisol during the COVID-19 outbreak, SES proved to be a moderator in this association. Only pregnant women with higher levels of SES, not lower levels, showed a positive association between work-related and social support-related COVID-19 worries and hair cortisol. Finally, prenatal hair cortisol was not associated with later infant temperamental negative affectivity and orienting/regulation.ConclusionAlthough the COVID-19 outbreak proved to be a major psychological stressor worldwide, the physiological impact of the crisis might be different for pregnant women with higher SES as compared to lower SES.

Project description:Background: The novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) has caused severe panic among people worldwide. In Italy, a nationwide state of alert was declared on January 31st, leading to the confinement of the entire population from March 11 to May 18, 2020. Isolation and quarantine measures cause psychological problems, especially for individuals who are recognized as being vulnerable. Parental bonding and attachment styles play a role in the programming of the stress response system. Here, we hypothesize that the response to restricted social contact and mobility due to the pandemic has detrimental effects on mental-psychological health and that this relationship is, at least in part, modulated by parental bonding and attachment relationships that are experienced at an early age. Methods: A sample of 68 volunteer University students was screened for psychopathological symptoms (SCL-90-R and STAI-Y), stress perception (PSS), attachment style (RQ), and parental care and overcontrol (PBI) 6 months before the confinement. In the same subjects, psychopathological symptoms and stress perception were measured again during confinement. Results: Overall, psychological health and stress management deteriorated across the entire sample during confinement. Specifically, a significant increase in phobic anxiety, depression, psychological distress, and perceived stress was observed. Notably, parental bonding and attachment styles modulated the psychological status during the lockdown. Individuals with secure attachment and high levels of parental care (high care) showed increased levels of state anxiety and perceived stress in phase 2, compared with phase 1. In contrast, individuals with insecure attachment and low levels of parental care (low care) already showed a high rate of state anxiety and perceived stress in phase 1 that did not increase further during phase 2. Conclusion: The general deterioration of psychological health in the entire sample demonstrates the pervasiveness of this stressor, a decline that is partially modulated by attachment style and parental bonding. These results implicated disparate sensitivities to environmental changes in the high- and low care groups during the lockdown, the former of which shows the greatest flexibility in the response to environment, suggesting adequate and functional response to stress in high care individuals, which is not observable in the low care group.

Dataset Information

Affective temperament, attachment style, and the psychological impact of the COVID-19 outbreak: an early report on the Italian general population.

Publications

Affective temperament, attachment style, and the psychological impact of the COVID-19 outbreak: an early report on the Italian general population.

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