Significant predictors of psychological distress in the group of Polish young adults during the COVID-19 epidemic outbreak: Sequential mediation model

Abstract

The study was conducted to identify significant predictors of psychological distress in the group of young Polish adults during COVID-19 epidemic outbreak. The web-based cross-sectional survey was applied to 975 Polish respondents (755 female, 77.44%) aged 18-35 years. They were divided into two age groups: younger (18-25) and older (25-35). All participants completed: General Functioning Questionnaire (GFQ), COVID-19 Risk Perception Scale (C-RPS), State Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S), and General Sense of Threat to Life Scale (GSTLS). The Polish adults aged 18-25 years manifested significantly higher psychological distress, state anxiety, and a sense of threat to life, but they perceived less risk in COVID-19 epidemic compared to older participants. Risk perception and a sense of threat to life were indirectly related to state anxiety and psychological distress. Significant predictors of psychological distress in the group of young adult Poles during the COVID-19 epidemic are: state anxiety, risk perception, and a sense of threat to life, where risk perception and a sense of threat to life mediate the relation between state anxiety and psychological distress.