Dataset Information

Changes in fears and worries related to COVID-19 during the pandemic among current employees in Japan: a 5-month longitudinal study.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

This study investigates and describes the time course of fears and worries about COVID-19 among current employees during this outbreak.

Study design

This was a longitudinal study.

Methods

This study was a part of the Employee Cohort Study in Japan. The study comprised 4120 individuals from February 2019. A baseline survey in March 2020, a 2-month follow-up survey in May 2020, and a 5-month follow-up survey in August 2020 were conducted. Questions surveyed respondents' global fear and worry and six items related to COVID-19. A mixed model for repeated measures of an analysis of variance was used.

Results

A total of 1421 respondents completed the baseline survey. At 2- and 5-month follow-ups, 1032 and 1181 respondents completed surveys, respectively. Of those, 64 and 33 individuals who were temporarily laid off or on leave were recorded as missing values. Global fear and worry about COVID-19 significantly increased from March to August 2020. Fears of personal or family infection, limiting one's activities and national and local government policies also significantly increased with time. In contrast, fears of lack of knowledge and difficulty of obtaining hygiene products significantly decreased.

Conclusion

To conduct efficient risk communication during a pandemic, knowing the concerns of the populace, providing correct information and a sufficient supply of products, and setting clear guidelines are essential.

SUBMITTER: Hidaka Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8463081 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:IntroductionWe used a longitudinal cohort of U.S. adults who were current or former smokers to explore how three participant-reported factors - general stress, COVID-19 distress, and perceived risk of complications from COVID-19 related to smoking - were associated with changes in smoking status.MethodsSmoking status was assessed at three time points. Timepoint 1 status was assessed at a prior study completion (2018-2020). Timepoint 2 (start of the pandemic) and Timepoint 3 (early phase of the pandemic) statuses were assessed using an additional survey in 2020. After classifying participants into eight groups per these time points, we compared the means of participant-reported factors and used a linear regression model to adjust for covariates.ResultsParticipants (n=392) were mostly female (73.9%) and non-Hispanic White (70.1%). Between Timepoints 2 and 3, abstinence rates decreased by 11%, and 40% of participants reported a smoking status change. Among those reporting a change and the highest general stress levels, newly abstinent participants had higher perceived risk of complications from COVID-19 related to smoking than those who relapsed during pandemic (mean (standard deviation): 14.2 (3.3) vs. 12.6 (3.8)). Compared to participants who sustained smoking, those who sustained abstinence, on average, scored 1.94 less on the general stress scale (βeta Coefficient (β): -1.94, p-value <0.01) and 1.37 less on the perceived risk of complications from COVID-19 related to smoking scale (β: -1.37, p-value 0.02).ConclusionsDecreased abstinence rates are concerning. Patterns of reported factors were as expected for individuals who sustained their smoking behavior but not for those who changed.ImplicationsWe observed an increase in smoking rates during the COVID-19 pandemic. In exploring how combinations of general stress levels, COVID-19 distress levels, and perceived risk of complications from COVID-19 related to smoking were associated with changes in smoking, we observed expected patterns of these factors among individuals who sustained abstinence or smoking. Among individuals who changed smoking status and reported high stress levels, those who reported a higher perceived risk of complications from COVID-19 related to smoking abstained from smoking. In contrast, those who reported a lower perceived risk of complications from COVID-19 related to smoking, started smoking. An intersectional perspective may be needed to understand smokers' pandemic-related behavior changes.